In the latest wave of climate-related narratives spread by the Kremlin, climate change is a vehicle to reinforce familiar disinformation tropes: the alleged authoritarianism and hypocrisy of the EU, Europe’s supposed self-inflicted decline through sanctions against Russia, and, ultimately, the claim that Europe has no choice but to restore relations with Russia as a supplier of affordable oil and gas. …
As the effects of climate change become increasingly difficult to ignore (including domestically in Russia), pro-Kremlin outlets have largely stopped(opens in a new tab) denying its existence. Instead, they have woven it into their disinformation ecosystem, shifting from denying the problem to discrediting proposed solutions.
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The supposedly “totalitarian nature” of the EU is one of the Kremlin’s most persistent narratives, and also one of its most versatile, with new regulation adopted by the Union often being portrayed as evidence of authoritarianism.
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However, the Kremlin’s propaganda machine is running on fumes. Russia’s own fuel crisis, driven by successful Ukrainian strikes on oil refineries and maritime fuel logistics, continues to deepen, and the authorities have already imposed a ban on diesel exports(opens in a new tab) in an effort to stabilise domestic supplies. Many petrol stations have shut down for lack of supplies, and those which are still open attract long lines(opens in a new tab). The crisis is affecting even essential services(opens in a new tab), such as hospitals and fire brigades. It is ironic that the country that has long predicted the imminent collapse of Europe’s economy over the loss of cheap Russian energy is now confronting the same problem itself, as rising fuel costs and supply disruptions begin to ripple through its own economy(opens in a new tab). In this new reality, Kremlin’s narratives are starting to look like projection, with Russia’s own problems being recast as Europe’s. Yet this is a crisis of Russia’s own making, and its solution is simple: end the war against Ukraine.
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