New information obtained by a European intelligence service suggests that Russia is attempting to build bipartisan support in Germany to prevent the country from helping Ukraine’s war efforts.
The documents outlined the Kremlin’s orders to focus on Germany to build anti-war sentiment in Europe to discourage support for Ukraine, according to The Washington Post, which reviewed the documents.
The documents suggest attempts from Russia to build support among the far left and far right against the German government’s efforts to support Ukraine, per The Washington Post.
In a proposed manifesto, Russia defined sanctions against Russia as counterproductive for German interests, according to The Washington Post.
“Inadequate politicians, unable to calculate the consequences of their decisions, have dragged Germany into conflict with Russia — a natural ally of our country and of our people,” the manifesto stated, per The Washington Post.
“Our interests demand the restoration of normal partnership relations with Russia. … Today in Germany there are only two parties: the party of enemies of Germany and the party of its friends.”
Overall, Russian imports to Germany have fallen 90% in the first year after Russia invaded Ukraine, according to MarketWatch.
Russian oil and gas imports to Germany have fallen 99.8% over the past year, per MarketWatch.
This has led Russian political strategists to work with Russian troll farms to popularize slogans such as “Buy gas, not war” and “Ukraine wants war, Germany wants peace,” according to The Washington Post.
Russian political strategists were also instructed by the Kremlin to discredit the European Union, the United States, Britain, and NATO, according to a document from August 2022 obtained by The Washington Post.
Russia’s attempt to divide the West by building anti-war sentiment between countries is a tactic that has been used by the country since the Cold War, according to The Washington Post.
“The documents basically show that Kremlin officials gave orders to a group of political strategists working with the Kremlin to focus on Germany as the base for efforts to weaken support in Europe for Ukraine and to try and sap support for weapons deliveries,” Catherine Belton, a journalist behind the report told Deutsche Welle (DW).
“I think Germany was seen as a weak link but also the most important link because of its role in sending tanks and so on to Ukraine,” Belton said.
The Kremlin’s goal is gaining traction, as the increase in Germany’s support of Russia improved by 10% within three months, according to DW.
