💡 SPOTLIGHT

German dupes, 60s peaceniks, Tucker Carlson: how to fight Moscow's disinformation machine

Russians have long waged systematic and effective disinformation campaigns. In an article for Ukrainian news website Livy Bereg, Roman Vybranovskyi considers “active measures” that have been successful in the past, and what can be done to fight them today, notably in Ukraine.

In his 2020 book Active Measures. The Secret History of Disinformation and Political Warfare, disinformation historian Thomas Rid quotes the first head of the KGB's Department D (disinformation), Ivan Aghayants, who said that the disinformation game is an easy one.

If “freedom of the press” didn’t exist, the KGB would have to invent it. The book contains the most vivid and effective examples of so-called "active measures," where spy agencies pour vast resources into hacking, leaking, and forging data, often with the goal of weakening the very foundation of liberal democracy.

Rid reveals for the first time some of history's most significant operations — many nearly beyond belief.

One example comes from the 1960s, when the Russians leaked to Der Spiegel plans for West Germany's military exercises and information that Europe's conventional weapons were not enough to repel an attack by the USSR. This sparked an enormous scandal for Germany's then influential Defense Minister Franz-Josef Strauss, who demanded the arrest of the magazine's owner and editor-in-chief, Rudolf Augstein. On Nov. 19, the cabinet's five Free Democratic Party ministers resigned, demanding that Strauss be fired.

This put Chancellor Konrad Adenauer at risk, as he was publicly accused of backing the suppression of a critical press with state resources. Strauss had no choice but to admit that he had lied to the parliament and was forced to resign. Charged with acting against the constitution, Strauss was exonerated by the courts. Bringing down Strauss had been the goal of a KGB operation.

The leaks this week of intercepted conversations inside the German military are sending similar shockwaves through Berlin, feeding Russian President Vladimir Putin's narrative about the West's responsibility in the war in Ukraine.

Until the end of the USSR, the administration that carried out "active measures" was the most desirable place of work and career. All mechanisms and work technologies were developed in the German Democratic Republic. Putin even started his career there. These stories were and are the basis of his "thinking."

Rid's book adeptly recounts U.S. Senate hearings that revealed a deeply rooted and intricate issue in communication between CIA employees and senators. This conversation took place during what was cynically termed the "Wars by Peace" era. The term is a Soviet concept from the 1970s, emerging as peace movements gained traction in the U.S. and Europe. Russia pursued a policy of war by manipulating U.S. peace movements and activists.

The distinction between activists and "active measures" proved to be minimal. It was even easier to manipulate activists than journalists. The USSR actively supported all peaceful groups, as they served Moscow’s desired purpose: while Moscow developed new weaponry, the American and European public clamored for peace and disarmament.

During this period, U.S. senators asked CIA employees: "Why don't you do anything to stop public organizations that work for Moscow?" Their answer: "Because they work within the law." [...]

— Read the full article by Roman Vybranovskyi for Livy Bereg, translated into English by Worldcrunch.

🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW

• Houthi attack kills three in first fatal strike on Red Sea shipping: Three crew members have been killed in a missile attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on a commercial ship in the Gulf of Aden — the first deaths in a campaign of assaults by the Iranian-backed group on merchant vessels. Hours after the attack, U.S. forces conducted strikes on two unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in Yemen. For further reading on Yemen as a “proxy war,” here’s Worldcrunch’s English edition of a recent analysis by Arabic-language news outlet Daraj.

• Hamas delegation accuses Israel of “thwarting” negotiation attempts: Hamas senior official Sami Abu Zuhri has accused Israel of having “thwarted” all efforts by mediators to reach a deal before Ramadan. The Hamas delegation has left Cairo but the group said ceasefire talks will continue until an agreement is reached.

• Senior Russian officer warns of escalation into full-scale war: Colonel-General Vladimir Zarudnitsky, head of the Russian army’s Military Academy of the General Staff, has warned that the conflict in Ukraine could escalate into a full-scale war in Europe, saying that the probability of Moscow’s forces becoming involved in a new conflict is increasing “significantly.” Meanwhile, a Russian missile exploded close to a convoy carrying Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during their visit in Odessa, amid a deadly attack on the Black Sea port city.

• Senegal sets date for delayed presidential elections: Senegalese President Macky Sall announced the country will hold its delayed presidential election on March 24, following a top court’s ruling that the leader’s plans to hold the vote after his term expires on April 2 were unconstitutional. Sall has also dissolved the government and named Interior Minister Sidiki Kaba as the new prime minister, “releasing” current Prime Minister Amadou Ba from his post to lead the presidential campaign for the president's camp. Here’s a piece on Senegal’s election upheaval and the current state of democracy in Africa.

• Modi visits Kashmir for first time since ending region’s semi-autonomy: India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made an official visit to Srinagar, the main city of Indian-administered Kashmir — his first since New Delhi scrapped the disputed region’s semi-autonomy in 2019. The visit comes ahead of the country’s national election due in May, the first since Modi’s government took direct control of the Muslim-majority territory.

• Rust armorer convicted in Baldwin shooting: Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the weapons supervisor on the set of Rust who loaded a gun for actor Alec Baldwin before it fired and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter for the 2021 incident. The 26-year-old faces up to 18 months in jail. Baldwin will also face a manslaughter trial in July.

• New Barbie dolls for International Women’s Day: Toymaker Mattel has unveiled its new series of Role Model Barbie dolls to mark both International Women’s Day on March 8 and the iconic doll’s 65th birthday on March 9. The dolls are modeled after Oscar-winning actresses Helen Mirren and Viola Davis, singers Kylie Minogue and Shania Twain, Mexican director Lila Avilés, Japanese model Nicole Fujita, German comedian Enissa Amani and Brazil’s Maira Gomez, a content creator from the indigenous Tatuyo community. Read all about Barbie’s creator, Ruth Handler, here.

🗞️ FRONT PAGE​​

“Slamming the door!" Mexico City-based La Prensa dedicates its front page to the latest protest of the relatives of the 43 students abducted in 2014. Demonstrators broke into the National Palace, where President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador was holding a news conference. They rammed a side door with a SUV with '43' spray-painted on it, demanding justice in the still unsolved Ayotzinapa case.

📰 STORY OF THE DAY

The German lawyer taking on the vaccine industry — by any means necessary

Lawyer Marco Rogert is taking vaccine manufacturers to court, suing them for damages on behalf of thousands of clients. On the surface this is about compensation. But dig a little deeper and you discover failings by the authorities, an alleged conspiracy — and lawyers raking in millions in fees, reports Nike Heinen in Berlin-based daily Die Welt.

⚖️ Rogert is representing people who are experiencing difficulties walking since their COVID vaccination. Some cannot even cross the street without getting out of breath, while others have an irregular heartbeat. “All in all there are 3,048 claimants,” he says. “Most of them have been waiting in vain for decisions from the social welfare office or help promised by the Health Minister, and now they are seeking compensation from the manufacturers of the mRNA vaccines.” From BioNtech and Moderna, that means.

💉 They have every right to take their case to court, but there is a problem. The claims that have emerged so far, over 400 of them, do not look like traditional healthcare cases. They hardly mention those affected, and dedicate more space to expressing fundamental concerns about mRNA vaccines, which Rogert believes should never have been licensed. The written complaint, which Rogert shared with Die Welt, is mostly a summary of the kinds of arguments against mRNA vaccines that are doing the rounds among conspiracy theorists online. 

💸 Any plaintiff who loses the case will also be liable for the court costs and the vaccine manufacturers’ legal fees — which, given that the value in dispute is 150,000 euros, could be more than 60,000 euros. While the outcome is uncertain for the plaintiffs, for the lawyers it is win-win. Whatever the result, they are entitled to their fees.

➡️ Read more on Worldcrunch.com

📹 THIS HAPPENED VIDEO — TODAY IN HISTORY, IN ONE ICONIC PHOTO

➡️ Watch the video: THIS HAPPENED

#️⃣ BY THE NUMBERS

21.06 °C

The average global sea surface temperature reached 21.06 °C (69.91 °F) last February, hitting a new record high, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). February 2024 was already the hottest February on record, marking the ninth straight month with such a milestone for respective month. The record temperature also comes a few days after the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warned that the world was on the verge of a fourth mass coral bleaching — expected to be the worst in the history of our planet — in the Southern Hemisphere due to ocean rising temperatures. Global warming isn’t just affecting temperatures: Check this recent Ethic article to learn more about its impact on how our food tastes.

📣 VERBATIM

“The Argentine science and technology system is approaching a dangerous precipice.”

— A letter signed by 68 international Nobel laureates in chemistry, medicine, economics, and physics was sent to Javier Milei, expressing grave concern about the new Argentine president’s drastic funding cuts to the National Council for Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET) and national universities. Government support for basic research has allowed the country to develop key medical et technological solutions and led to global contributions. “We are discouraged by the consequences that this situation could have both for the Argentine people and for the world,” the letter reads.

📸 PHOTO DU JOUR

Polish farmers' latest demonstrations have led to violent confrontations with the police. Protesting against the European Union’s climate policies and food imports from Ukraine, the farmers pushed through barriers and threw stones at officers, trying to get through the Sejm, the Polish parliament. More than a dozen people were arrested. — Photo: Attila Husejnow/SOPA Images/ZUMA

👉  MORE FROM WORLDCRUNCH  

• Beaten, Stripped Naked, Laughed At: A Palestinian Woman's Horror In Israeli Detention — DARAJ

• The United Nations And Israel: It's Complicated — FRANCE INTER

• Testosterona, A Chilean Writer Confronts The Childhood Trauma Of "Gay Cure" — CLARÍN

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