On March 13, an expert roundtable discussion titled “Russian Information Campaigns and Influences in Ukraine and the World. The Experience of Resilience” was held at the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center (UCMC).
The event was attended by delegations from Ghana and South Africa, including:
- Godwin Asediba (Media General, Ghana)
- Dr. Kojo Impraim (Director of the Media for Peace and Sustainable Development program at the Media Foundation for West Africa)
- Alexandra Eileen Pefanis Rougier Lagane (News 24, South Africa)
- Riaan Marais (The Herald, South Africa)
Among Ukrainian participants were representatives from Center for Countering Disinformation, Ukraine Crisis Media Center, Detector Media, Lviv Media Forum, Centre for Information Resilience.
The discussion focused on the issue of Russian hybrid information influence campaigns in African countries. The roundtable participants exchanged up-to-date experiences in identifying manipulative operations, investigating FIMI (Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference), and malign information influence at political, cultural, and economic levels.
Additionally, experts expressed concerns about current and future trends in the global spread of Russian propaganda.
Experts from Ukrainian organizations shared their experience in countering disinformation. Special attention was given to Russia’s attempts to mislead audiences in African countries by spreading anti-Ukrainian fake narratives.
Journalists from Ghana and South Africa spoke about how civil societies in their countries work to counter malign influence.
The Head of the Hybrid Warfare Analytical Group (HWAG) at the UCMC, Volodymyr Solovian, presented the HWAG’s latest analytical findings on the issue of Russia’s information influence in Africa. Volodymyr Solovian highlighted the following:
- Africa is one of the priority regions for Russia’s global information operations. According to HWAG’s assessments, the next peak in Russian propaganda activity regarging African countries is expected in mid-2026, coinciding with the third Russia-Africa Summit.
- In the coming years, Russia’s international propaganda will continue to exploit narratives of anti-Americanism and resentment toward the West. Amid the withdrawal of U.S.-funded humanitarian programs in Africa, Russia will attempt to “monetize” the surge of disappointment with the actions of Donald Trump’s administration across various regions.
- Russia is actively conducting efforts to increase loyalty among journalistic communities in African countries. The HWAG’s investigations indicate that RT Academy plays a key role in this process. Through this training program, Russian propagandists not only share their “experience” with international participants but also disseminate pro-Russian narratives, recruit local journalists for pro-Russian influence campaigns, or directly hire them to work for RT. As of now, the African branch of RT Academy is the largest, with over 1,000 participants from 35 African countries enrolled in the course.
- In the near future, Russia will intensify the use of AI-driven manipulative technologies to expand its reach. Despite economic difficulties caused by the war, Russia continues to allocate significant state budget resources for the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Moreover, Russia does not limit AI operations by international law, disregards ethical and moral standards, and remains unregulated in this field. As a result, the Kremlin retains the initiative in conducting global AI-driven information campaigns.
- Elections are particularly vulnerable periods for AI-based attacks aimed at undermining information resilience. The Nigerian election in 2023 and the South African election in 2024 demonstrated the rapid spread of deepfake technology in political campaigning. Similar tactics will be deployed by Russian propaganda in various regions worldwide. Therefore, the threat of AI misuse by malicious actors to discredit democratic institutions is an urgent challenge for the international community.
