Sanctions on the spotlight: Disinformation targets Latvia

Disinformation framing Latvia as Russophobic is part of a long-term campaign, this time resurfacing due to the implementation of US sanctions.

Starting from December, pro-Kremlin outlets have been targeting Latvia and accusing it of Russophobia and of acting as a US puppet and a failed state, new analysis by the Centre for East European Studies (CEEPS) has found.

The report analyses the main narratives targeting Latvia, based on 102 articles published between 9 December 2019 and 8 January 2020 in two Russian-language online platforms famous for spreading the pro-Kremlin messages – lv.sputniknews.ru and bb.lv. The analysis highlights several tactics how the two outlets abuse the case of the U.S. Treasury sanctions of 9 December 2019 imposed against Aivars Lembergs – a controversial Latvian businessperson and long-time mayor of Ventspils (the country’s sixth-largest town hosting one of the major seaports) – to spread coordinated narratives defaming the Latvian government

Source: http://euromaidanpress.com/2020/02/28/sanctions-on-the-spotlight-disinformation-targets-latvia/