Reports
Lithuania Weekly: Government Distrust, Ethnic Divisions, and Freedom of Speech Concerns
Lithuanian media was dominated by various topics, giving a clear and convenient basis for anti-government narratives to spread. Teachers’ protest taking place, was picturing Lithuania as a failed state by harshly criticising its education system; recently proposed comprehensive reform plan for the country's Public Security Service (VST) sparked many discussions about its necessity and future impact for people in the field; blames of general incompetence of the ruling government continued to be a prominent topic. Kremlin-aligned media in the country claimed to have “finally figured out” who is mainly benefitting from the war in Ukraine, referring to Western countries, mocked the new or ongoing sanctions imposed on Russia, and kept ironically calling Lithuanian politicians the “real supporters of war”.
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Lithuania Weekly: Anti-Ukraine and Anti-Support Sentiments
Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and its spillover effects (the outlets highlighted a Russian drone exploding in NATO territory, calculations of Russian losses so far in the war, and Ukraine’s movement in the battlefield around Donetsk city; attempts of migrants to illegally cross the border with Belarus, after Lithuania decided to close two more border crossings with the country; a new rise in COVID-19 cases. Kremlin-aligned media in Lithuania continued to actively promote the anti-government narrative, with the majority of most popular stories from this type of media outlet carrying this sentiment. Articles mainly targeted the whole government and judicial system, accusing them of dishonesty, bribery, and general incompetence. Kremlin-aligned media also emphasised the damage that the war in Ukraine causes to Lithuania and tried to promote the necessity of a truce, under any conditions.
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Latvia Weekly: COVID-19 Disinformation and Anti-Ukraine Sentiments
The main narrative concerned the claims of COVID-19 being a source of government oppression through mandatory vaccines which also doubles as corruption as too much funding is going to buying COVID-19 vaccines. Additionally, the war in Ukraine was also referenced with the main narratives being related to corruption and mismanagement of financial resources. From the two most prominent topics, content relating to COVID-19 gained more overall engagement hence resulting in more COVID-19-related content creation.
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