The Department of National Security has identified in Spain an increase in disinformation campaigns coming from the orbit of the Kremlin since Russia invaded Ukraine. And there is enormous concern about this threat, which poses a risk to national security. According to the organization, which depends on Moncloa, disinformation is a powerful “weapon” in the cognitive field that, used in a systematic and organized way, can “wear out or weaken the hearts and minds” of the adversary.
The latest clear example of Russian disinformation took place last week via a tweet. Experts agree that one of the recurring patterns in these poisoning campaigns is that it is very difficult to identify the first sender of the fake message. This time it was not like that. Hence the perplexity with which this episode was experienced in several ministries. It originated from the official account of the Russian Embassy in Spain.
The tweet was simple but loaded with intention. A phrase taken from an interview that the Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, gave to La Vanguardia in which she assured that Spain “will never, ever, participate in the war in Ukraine” and a video in which four fighters appeared speaking Spanish from a trench dug in alleged Ukrainian soil. The tweet was posted Wednesday at noon. In the evening it was deleted, after the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, demanded it from the Russian ambassador Yuri Klimenko.
The tweet is the paradigm of the recurring narrative that the Russian government is promoting against Western democracies. The Department of National Security has identified a series of narratives that revolve around ideas that can reach sectors of Spanish society. And hence the enormous concern for these campaigns. According to the department, these ideas are “evil elites against the people”, “threatened traditional values”, the loss of sovereignty of States and the threat to national identity and values” or “the imminent collapse of democracies westerners”. The forces and security bodies of the State try to detect these narratives and anticipate them.
Last year there was a week marked in red on the calendar, the NATO summit held in Madrid. This 2023, according to sources from the Ministry of the Interior, efforts are being redoubled, because there are two “critical moments for public security in Spain”: the electoral processes – the regional and municipal ones on 28 M and the generals at the end of the year – and the upcoming Spanish presidency of the European Union during the second semester. For its part, the National Intelligence Center (CNI) is also monitoring the activities of hostile intelligence services, “both inside and outside” Spanish territory. In addition, the CNI works by providing support to detect them and, as far as possible, facilitating their attribution.
National Security warns that the future of disinformation is an uncertain field. And more so when another factor that has so far been very residual in these destabilizing campaigns is advancing: artificial intelligence, so popular in recent weeks. Police sources say that the key is to neutralize or minimize the impact on public opinion in general and on polarized and more vulnerable communities in particular. Subtly, so that it germinates in an almost imperceptible way, the aim of these upcoming disinformation campaigns is to “instill discouragement in Europe”.
The Kremlin satellites are trying to defend that the EU is in an economic crisis as a result of the sanctions imposed on Russia. The supposed impossibility of Europe to resist without gas or oil from Russia. Also deflect Russian responsibility in the growing food crisis, and the insecurity of supply. And that’s why the country that assumes the rotating presidency is the perfect target. Spain: from July to December.
In the political sphere, the Government is also coordinated to be “relentless” in the face of any Russian interference that is detected. This was demonstrated after the publication of the controversial tweet once it was removed. After the silence of the first day, Minister Robles spoke of “very clear misinformation”, and the Minister of the Presidency, Félix Bolaños, referred to “insinuations that were absolutely lacking in foundation”.