The U.S. State Department has announced in a statement that Russia is deliberately funding a comprehensive disinformation campaign in Latin America to promote its own interests in these countries.
As reported by The Kyiv Independent, the statement mentioned that the Kremlin is closely working with media companies to undermine support for Ukraine in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil, Peru, and other Latin American countries. The U.S. State Department identified the Social Design Agency (SDA), the Institute for Internet Development, and Structura as the three entities supporting Moscow’s disinformation campaigns.
Stories aim to justify the war against Ukraine
According to the Americans, these companies have “a history of spreading disinformation and propaganda to further Russia’s goals of foreign influence.” The statement further explains: “Ultimately, this information laundering process would result in Kremlin-friendly content created in Russia being ‘localized’ by curated Latin American staff.” Some of the stories spread by Moscow were intended to stir up sentiment against the USA and NATO, while others justified the war against Ukraine.
Image: Kremlin.ru, CC BY 4.0, Vladimir Putin 18.03.2021.jpg, via Wikimedia Commons (no changes made)
