Report
Latvia Weekly: Disinformation Fuels Opposition to the Istanbul Convention
Ainars Šlesers of party Latvia First propagates false narratives claiming the Istanbul Convention promotes a “117 gender policy” and threatens traditional families, when the treaty actually focuses solely on preventing violence against women and domestic violence. He employs aggressive rhetoric against political opponents, repeatedly comparing Progressive party members to “Lenin,” sharing digitally altered images of them, and using terms like “gangsters” and accusations of “aggression” and “brainwashing” to delegitimize those who support the Convention.
Weekly Reports
Latvia Weekly: Russian Language Debate Fuels Radical Rhetoric
Aleksejs Roslikovs sparked major controversy with his parliamentary declaration “There are more of us! We cannot be banned!” in response to proposed Russian language restrictions, leading to criminal proceedings for allegedly assisting Russia and inciting hatred. Following incidents including a hanging his effigy and offensive football fan posters targeting him, Roslikovs has leveraged these threats to construct a comprehensive victimization narrative on social media, portraying himself as a persecuted defender of Russian speakers against what he characterizes as organized extremist persecution and broader conspiracies by Latvia’s establishment.
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Estonia Weekly: NATO Summit Fuels Kremlin Disinformation
Pro-Kremlin voices on social media depicted NATO as aggressive and divided, criticizing Baltic defence moves and mocking Western leadership. In Estonia, Russian-speaking groups amplified nuclear tensions and spread false claims about EU opposition to Ukraine’s membership to support Kremlin narratives.
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Latvia Weekly: MP’s Arrest Fuels Populist Narrative Online
Aleksejs Roslikovs transformed his detention by Latvia’s State Security Service on charges of assisting Russia and inciting hatred into a powerful social media narrative of political martyrdom, portraying himself as a persecuted victim fighting government oppression. His TikTok videos reframing the criminal investigation as evidence of his heroic resistance demonstrate how populist politicians can exploit legal troubles to strengthen their anti-establishment credentials and generate massive online engagement.
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Estonia Weekly: Kremlin Echoes Persist Over Church Law
Pro-Kremlin voices on Russian-speaking social media portrayed Estonia’s revised Churches and Congregations Act as continued state persecution of the Orthodox Church, reinforcing a narrative of religious oppression and general Russophobia. Simultaneously, they condemned the U.S. strikes in Iran as aggressive and hypocritical, using them to justify Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
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Lithuania Weekly: Pro-Kremlin Media Stirs Backlash Over Military Remarks
Kremlin-aligned media in Lithuania shifted focus to domestic issues, fueling outrage with a headline quoting Defence Minister Šakalienė on women in the military. The quote, taken out of context, sparked intense online backlash. President Nausėda was also targeted over a proposal for presidential benefits, framed as elitist and corrupt.
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Latvia Weekly: Pushing Anti-Latvian Narratives to Russian-Speaking Audiences
The “Antifascists of Pribaltics” Telegram channel portrays Latvia as systematically Russophobic. The channel also promotes conspiracies about Latvia being an EU puppet state as well as anti-Ukraine sentiments.
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Estonia Weekly: Middle East Tensions Fuel Anti-Western Rhetoric
A former journalist has been sentenced to six years in prison in Estonia for treason and for promoting Kremlin propaganda. Meanwhile, social media commentators accused the West of hypocrisy in the wake of Israeli attacks on Iran.
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Lithuania Weekly: Kremlin-Aligned Media Amplifies Anti-Ukraine Narratives
Pro-Kremlin voices in Lithuania reignited criticism of Ukraine and Lithuanian foreign policy following a major Ukrainian strike against Russian air forces. Malign actors mocked President Nausėda’s call for continued support to Ukraine and questioned NATO’s reliability, while pushing disinformation about looming civil unrest and vilifying the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union as a threat to national stability.
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Latvia Weekly: Roslikovs’ Outburst Sparks a Viral Storm
Party National Alliance and leader of Stability party Aleksejs Roslikovs created a major political scandal. The National Alliance proposed a declaration in the Parliament calling to restrict use of Russian language in public spaces (which was rejected by the Parliament). Roslikovs reacted to this proposal using inflammatory language and gestures in the Parliament. This incident clearly illustrates how nationalist and Russian political parties exploit each other’s actions to fuel both domestic tensions and Kremlin’s propaganda narratives.
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