The war in Ukraine, sovereigntist rhetoric and conspiracy theories regarding the so-called sanitary dictatorship were the topics of scores of disinformation narratives and fake news published in Romania in 2022. They were promoted by/on various media outlets (România liberă, Național, Activenews, GoldFM, gândește.org etc.) as well as on social media by controversial figures. Among them, Sorin Roșca Stănescu - a former informer of the communist secret police and the recipient of a prison sentence, Ion Cristoiu, Cosmin Gușă – a typically East-European blend of politician/analyst/consultant/businessman whom the Romanian media describes as a close friend/supporter/agent of influence of Russia, Iosefina Pascal, former and current politicians such as Andrei Marga, Diana Șoșoacă, Adrian Severin and others. Of the other false narratives promoted in Romania in 2022, worth highlighting are those referring to a purported “eco-dictatorship” related to climate change denial, which will most likely be the core of the next massive wave of disinformation.
TOP 5 false narratives
Romania is a Western colony and is treated by its “allies” as a second-tier country that needs to be exploited. This is one of the main narratives used by the supporters of sovereigntism or communist era diehards, which have been circulated in the public sphere for years. Such theses regarding the West are rooted in communist propaganda and in other theses circulated right after the anti-communist revolution (“we won’t sell our country”), and are often underlying Putin’s propaganda or the discourse of other sovereigntists in the region. The meta-narrative about Romania being a colony of the West was used in fake news and disinformation narratives designed to erode trust in the EU, or in public outbursts regarding national assets stolen by foreigners.
The war between Russia and Ukraine is described as a war waged by NATO against Moscow. The claim about an alleged NATO threat against Russia was circulated long before it was picked up in Romania. It was promoted by Russian propaganda, at first to justify Moscow’s appetite for new territories (the invasion of Georgia in 2008, the invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and 2022) and is based on older Soviet narratives according to which NATO had “surrounded” the USSR with its bases. As Russian forces started to sustain defeats in Ukraine, the narrative was amended, and the new claim is that Russia is actually fighting NATO/the West, and that Ukrainians are used as cannon fodder.
Romania risks between drawn into / is taking part in the war in Ukraine. The narrative is related to the previous two: as a colony of the West, Romania will be involved (or is already involved) in its conflict against Russia. One of the most outlandish fake news used to support this narrative was that Romania has already sent thousands of servicemen to take part in the war in Ukraine. Another narrative, dating back to the start of the war, tried to tie the accidental crash of two Romanian army aircraft to the conflict in Ukraine, stating they had been shot down by Ukrainian forces in Dobruja.
Ukraine is an artificial state, created on the territory of other countries (which these countries want to reclaim), which makes Russia’s territorial claims legitimate. This Russian-backed false narrative was also picked up in Romania under different forms. It was included in former Foreign Minister Andrei Marga’s speech in mid-September, when he claimed that Ukraine must concede territories to Russia, Romania, Hungary and Poland in order to secure peace in the war with Russia. It was then reiterated in another piece of disinformation, according to which, just like Andrei Marga, Henry Kissinger claims that Ukraine must cede territories to Russia in exchange for peace. In reality, Kissinger detailed a diplomatic scenario imagined by him in spring, meant to provide a solution to reach peace following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Other related narratives focus on the so-called authoritarian character of the Ukrainian state and on the discrimination of Romanians in Ukraine, although in the years prior to the Russian invasion such topics attracted little interest in Romania.
The sanitary dictatorship continues to kill people by means of anti-COVID vaccination. Conspiracy theories revolving around the health system and vaccination took off with the COVID pandemic, when false narratives and conspiracy theories regarding, for instance, the toxicity of vaccines or the efforts of a global cabal to keep world population in check, which had been circulated even before the pandemic, were adjusted and spread on a large scale. Although anti-COVID restrictions were lifted and the vaccination rate became insignificant in 2022, false narratives focusing on the sanitary dictatorship and vaccination continued to sweep the Romanian media. Even in the first half of the year, someone wrote that Simona Halep was knocked out from the Australian Open because she had taken the Covid vaccine, whereas a longer series of articles attributed unexpected fatalities to vaccination. "The global cabal" is planning to microchip children is but one example of fake news circulated in Romania in 2022, intertwining several conspiracy theories: eco-dictatorship, the machinations of a global cabal convened at the Forum in Davis or using chips/bar codes for occult purposes.
TOP 5 FAKE NEWS
FAKE NEWS: Upsizing the NATO forces in Romania doesn’t make any sense, as Russia isn’t threatening anyone. The claim was made by the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, in February 2022, as Russia was on the verge of invading Ukraine and had amassed a sizable force on the Ukrainian border. At the time, Russia had for years manifested an aggressive policy (which resulted in attacks on Georgia and Ukraine, cyber-attacks in Estonia and brutal acts of aggression in Syria) which had raised the concern of NATO states in eastern Europe. Moreover, apart from military campaigns, Russia was also behind assassinations and acts of sabotage in NATO countries which it tried to destabilize using disinformation and fake news campaigns and attempts to meddle in national elections.
FAKE NEWS: The referendums held in occupied Ukraine are legitimate, and Russia’s military strength overpowers the West’s. The Russian-held regions in Ukraine have a right to self-determination and the referendums organized by Russia here are as legitimate as the independence of Kosovo, reads a false narrative launched by România liberă. The publication also reiterates the false claim spread by Russian propaganda regarding Russia’s military superiority over the West. Both claims are false. Comparing the situation in Kosovo to the developments in Ukraine is a fallacy – the former refers to a military intervention designed to put an end to an ethnic cleansing campaign launched by Yugoslavia, while the latter was the invasion of an independent state. The referendums organized by Russia in the four Ukrainian territories fail to abide by democratic standards and were staged as hostilities were ongoing, unlike the referendum in Kosovo. Finally, the claim about Russia’s purported military superiority is refuted by the disastrous unfolding of Russia’s campaign and the impact Western weapon deliveries have had on the evolution of the conflict, although these were not state-of-the-art NATO ordnance.
FAKE NEWS: The UN Charter allows Russia to attack Ukraine in order to combat Nazism. Articles 106 and 107 of the UN Charter grant Russia, as the legal successor of the USSR, the right to take all measures, including military, against Germany, Hungary, Austria, Romania, Bulgaria, Finland, Croatia, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and Ukraine for attempts to revive Nazism. Strangely enough, the main allies of the Nazis, Italy and Japan, are omitted. In fact, it is another crude attempt to push a justification for the Russian invasion of Ukraine by falsely quoting and manipulatively interpreting several post-WWII treaties and documents.
FAKE NEWS: The Netherlands opposes Romania’s Schengen accession because the port of Constanța threatens the supremacy of the port of Rotterdam. This false narrative was reiterated in 2022 in the context of Bucharest hoping Romania would be admitted into the Schengen area by the end of the year. However, it emerged 10 years earlier, originally launched by Voice of Russia. The narrative states that the Netherlands will never agree to Romania joining the Schengen area, for fear the port of Constanța might become the biggest port in Europe, thus irreversibly impacting the Dutch economy, which is largely based on trade coming in and out of the port of Rotterdam, a false narrative promoted in Bucharest reads. In fact, a real competition between the two ports is out of the question, since the port of Rotterdam is better positioned on the map and has superior infrastructure and operational capacities.
FAKE NEWS: The reform of the justice system leads to the undermining of the Constitutional Court and Romania losing its sovereignty. Romania is losing its sovereignty, the Constitution will no longer be observed, and Romanian justice will be carried out in Brussels at the pleasure of the West, according to a false narrative launched in the context of the debates on the justice laws. In reality, amending the law on the status of judges and prosecutors only aligns the Romanian justice system with the European one, observing the principle of the primacy of European Law.
Top 5 DISINFORMATION narratives
DISINFORMATION: UE is strongarming Romania to renounce its Constitution and sovereignty. Romania is foced to renounce its Constitution and sovereignty, according to a new disinformation amplified by Senator Diana Șoșoacă and Sputnik. The Romanian senator speculated a ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union, which merely reasserted the prevalence of European law over national legislation. The purpose of this narrative is to undermine people’s confidence in the EU and promote sovereigntist rhetoric.
DISINFORMATION: Whistleblowers are “snitches”, just like former Securitate informers. Whistleblowers are “snitches”, much like the former informers of the Securitate in the communist period, according to a false narrative promoted in Bucharest by an actual ex-informer, Sorin Roșca Stănescu. The narrative has been circulated in the context of the adoption of a whistleblower law by the Chamber of Deputies, robbing the former of whatever protection they were offered under EU law. The law was subsequently amended, without however fulfilling all the standards stipulated in the EU Directive 2019/1937 regarding the protection of whistleblowers, which states that whistleblowers are vital for maintaining an open and transparent society, as they expose misconduct or hidden threats.
DISINFORMATION: Russia is not to blame for the energy and natural gas price surge. Russia is not to blame for the global rise in energy prices, it is the fault of an increasingly greedy Europe that has created “energy bubbles”. This false narrative, promoted in an online publication in Romania, repeats Russian propaganda and ignores Moscow's actions that actually led to the current situation – first cutting gas exports ahead of the war, followed by the invasion proper.
DISINFORMATION: Most Romanians want their country to leave NATO and the EU. Most Romanian nationals want their country to leave NATO and the EU and there is no party that can politically capitalize on this move, according to a false narrative promoted by Gold FM, a radio station previously linked to promoting disinformation and fake news. The narrative is contradicted by surveys.
DISINFORMATION: Sanctions do not affect Russia, but will cause a severe economic crisis in the West. The economic sanctions imposed on Moscow, including the capping of oil prices, do not affect the Russian economy but cause a major economic crisis in the West, according to a false narrative spread in Romania. In fact, sanctions are being felt in Russia on a wider scale, and even though economic growth in the western world has slowed down a bit, it has not stopped.
TOP 5 most outlandish narratives
Putin is a good Christian, a victim of the Russophobic discourse, and has nothing to do with Communism, imposed on Russia by the West. The theses were promoted by the Archbishop of Tomis, Teodosie, a known advocate of conspiracy theories regarding vaccines in Romania. Teodosie was exposed as a former informer of the Securitate and was targeted by several criminal investigations. The statements (which are unbecoming for a cleric) were made as Putin was preparing the large-scale invasion of Ukraine, long after Russia had attacked Georgia and Ukraine and had devastated Chechnya and parts of Syria, all under Putin’s watchful eye. Adding to these is a long string of assassinations of domestic opponents. Vladimir Putin was raised and trained in the USSR and has publicly expressed his admiration for the Soviet Union.
The mines launched by Ukraine could blow up the Black Sea, causing a cataclysm in Europe. The mines deployed in the Black Sea by Ukraine might explode the hydrogen sulfide in the sea and thus cause a cataclysm in Europe. This false narrative was disseminated in Romania by Sorin Roșca Stănescu as part of Cozmin Gușă’s radio show. Both had previously backed disinformation themes and fake news and had has voiced opinions that resonated with Russia’s. The theory on the explosion in the Black Sea was launched in the Soviet period, as Sorin Roșca Stănescu himself admitted, but it was debunked over three decades ago. In fact, throughout history the Black Sea was the stage of naval warfare, including the use of mines, which produced countless explosions, none resulting however in a cataclysmic event – or at least none that would suggest such an explosion would be possible. The Black Sea is, indeed, home to hydrogen sulfide deposits, but it would take a massive explosion to cause a cataclysm – tantamount to the impact of an asteroid of at least 250 m in diameter, or a nuclear explosion..
In Great Britain, a woman was arrested on suspicion of silently praying. Dozens of international conservative organizations and supporting media around the world have condemned in recent days the arrest by British police of a woman for the “crime” of saying a prayer to herself on a street in Birmingham. In reality, the woman was unlawfully in an area where she shouldn’t have been, according to a protection order, thus breaching a local council decision.
Eco-dictatorship will push humanity towards a feudal social system, with people “tied to the land and totally dependent on a master”.. In the name of combating climate change, people will be forbidden to move freely, and in Oxford the implementation of this system has already begun, according to a false narrative that also appeared in Romania. This narrative, just like others, pertains to climate denialism and conspiracy theories according to which global warming is an invention intended to justify the establishment of a so-called eco-dictatorship. Moreover, should no major events such as COVID pandemic or the war in Ukraine occur in the future, the next massive wave of disinformation will target eco-dictatorship.
A blackout will sweep Romania during the holidays so that patriots can be assassinated. Brussels has given the go-ahead for the physical and spiritual destruction of Romania, one of the last bastions in the fight against globalism, and a blackout will be triggered in this country so that sovereigntists can be taken out. This piece of disinformation stemmed from a dialogue between Luis Lazarus and Diana Iovanovici-Șoșoacă. Ridden with mystical drivel, lies and elements recalling of Nazi propaganda, the narrative surfaced in response to the first “blackout” simulation in Romania, organized in Mediaș.
