Macron warns of "Russia's secret army" of bots which undermine Western democracies

French President Emmanuel Macron has said that it would be naive for Europeans not to acknowledge the existence of "Russia's secret army" of bots, which manipulate and seek to undermine Western democracies from within.

Source: Macron in an interview with German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The French president noted that the West had long underestimated Russia.

"Russia may be economically much weaker than Europe, its population is shrinking, and its industry is not innovative. But it produces much more weaponry, and at a faster pace. We underestimated the threat," he said.

Macron reiterated his point that Europe is in a state of permanent confrontation.

Quote: "Alongside terrorism, Russia is the biggest structural threat to Europeans. It endangers our collective security through interference in our election campaigns, cyberattacks, assassinations of opposition figures, and the manipulation of migration flows as leverage. Russia is testing our air defence and has changed its nuclear doctrine."

Details: He added that the West had underestimated the extent of Russian influence on public opinion through the spread of falsehoods.

Quote: "Our open societies are vulnerable to information warfare. We would be naive if we did not recognise that Russia's secret army is spreading within our democracies. It consists of these small, faceless warriors called digital bots. They manipulate democracy in France, Germany and Europe."

Background: After the recent incursion of Russian drones into Poland, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on X (Twitter) that the spread of Russian propaganda and disinformation undermines the Polish state.

Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!