Russian propaganda targets Baltic Sea, military links it to Baltops 2025 exercise

VILNIUS - In June, Russian propaganda focused on the Baltic Sea and spread misleading messages about NATO raising tensions in the region and threatening Russia, according to analysts from the Lithuanian Armed Forces.

The increased number of references to the Baltic Sea may be linked to NATO's Baltops 2025 exercise, which started in early June.

Russian officials argued that the Baltic Sea exercise, organized by the U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa, is escalating tensions that could lead to a conflict between NATO and Russia.

As soon as the exercise started, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said that Baltops 2025 was a preparation for a military conflict with Russia.

Other messages on the subject sought to suggest that the exercise was a continuation of NATO's provocative activities in the Baltic Sea, which have been actively carried out since January, following the launch of the Baltic Sentry mission aimed at countering attempts to attack underwater infrastructure in the region.

Propaganda channels spread the message of increased risk of conflict in the Baltic Sea, reinforced by simultaneous military exercise by the Russian Baltic Fleet. The Russian narrative on the increasing risk of conflict in the Baltic Sea was also captured in the Chinese media.

Hostile information activities were also more active during the NATO summit in The Hague, but this meeting received less attention from propagandists compared to last year.

The main hostile messages were directed against NATO's agreement to increase defense spending. Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that the Alliance was lying about the threat posed by Russia in order to justify an increase in defense spending.

It was also claimed that this decision by NATO provokes "global militarization" and therefore increases tensions globally. Similar messages were likely intended to divert attention from Russia's aggressive actions and to convince internal audiences of the Alliance's supposed threat.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's derogatory statement that the Baltic countries are "three little bullies" acting one the orders of the big European powers was widely quoted.

The reaction to the decision of the Baltic states, Poland and Finland to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention also received attention as it was claimed that this decision was a costly show-off that would endanger their citizens.

Compared to the previous period, there were fewer hostile information incidents aimed at Lithuania and its partners, but there were a number of statements by high-ranking Russian and Belarusian officials.