The U.N. Security Council recently convened an emergency meeting to discuss Russian allegations of secret U.S. biological warfare programs in Ukraine, with China signaling its support for an investigation. Historically minded observers might register some deja vu; Russia and China have sung this exact tune many times before.
Seventy years ago, both powers (plus North Korea) brought virtually identical charges to the United Nations, and they have been making similar claims on and off ever since. Bogus biowarfare allegations are straight from their Disinformation’s Greatest Hits album.
The revival of this strategy suggests a concerted effort to weaken the coalition of forces aiding Ukraine’s defense, distract from Russian atrocities in Ukraine and prepare Russian (and possibly Chinese) citizens for protracted conflict.
It all began with balloons. When the United States launched the Marshall Plan in 1948 to rebuild postwar Europe and expand Washington’s influence, it earmarked a large chunk of money to combating communist propaganda. In those tense early years of the Cold War, Americans feared the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin was exploiting postwar chaos to advance the Kremlin’s reach, with propaganda and subversion as preferred weapons.
So Marshall Plan posters and pamphlets highlighted American generosity and preached the value of European unity in the face of Soviet threats. One stunt included tying leaflets articulating these themes to balloons. The winds carried them...
Turkish base fake news in Armenia For several days, a video has been circulating on social media claiming that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan allegedly signed a “secret agreement” with EU ...