An event dedicated to methods of identification and combating Russian propaganda and disinformation took place in Tbilisi
We constantly face many risks in the modern world, such as deadly viruses, wars, terrorism, etc. With the advance of the internet and the proliferation of social networks and instant messengers, individuals, and entire societies started encountering the risks posed by malicious information activity.
Some of us have actually fell victim to disinformation, propaganda, manipulation, or became targeted by a hate campaign. These threats did not pass Georgia by, as it has been one of the targets for Russian malicious activity for years, and it affected Georgia long before Russian interference in the American elections made the headlines around the world.
And now Georgians encounter Russian disinformation and propaganda on a daily basis. For several years now, there are active discussions in the EU and the USA about how to combat Russian malicious information activity. The governments of some European countries and the USA created entities and groups to fight the Russian Malicious Information Activity, and while their effectiveness is questionable, it shows the serious intentions of these countries and the importance they attach to this issue. Besides the governments, NGOs, businesses, as well as think tanks and universities, also actively engage in study and combat against malicious information activity.
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, combating the Russian malicious information activity has become an even more urgent issue not only for Western countries but for our country as well. Raising awareness about this problem became an immediate concern. The world media started to dedicate more and more attention to combating and exposing disinformation, propaganda, and psychological operations.
In this connection, an event on combating Russian malicious information activity titled "Identification and combat against Russian disinformation and propaganda" was held on May 29, 2023, at the office of the Georgian Strategic Analysis Center in Tbilisi.
This event is the first in a series of planned events as part of the joint initiative of the Ukraine Crisis Media Center and Tarand Inc.
The Georgian Strategic Analysis Center acted as a local partner of the initiative.
About 50 Georgian students, NGO representatives, experts, journalists, former officials as well as foreign diplomats accredited in Georgia attended the event.
During the event, Georgian expert Tornike Sharashenidze, Ukraine Crisis Media Center the Hybrid Warfare Analytical Group (HWAG, UCMC) expert Inna Polianska, and the founder of Tarand.io, Ali Hajizade, delivered their presentations.
Mr. Hajizade told us that it was not by chance that Tbilisi was chosen to host the first event under the joint initiative. On the one hand, Georgia has become and still is one of the main targets for Russian malicious information activity since the early 2000s, while on the other hand, about 20% of Georgian territory is under de facto Russian occupation. Thus, raising awareness on this issue is an essential task with regard to strengthening the national security of Georgia. Therefore, we could not pass Georgia by, he concluded.
In his presentation, Ali Hajizade discussed the Russian concept of the "Battle in the Psychosphere" and demonstrated how the Russian propaganda machine uses the findings of psychology researchers to manipulate people and spread its propaganda and disinformation.
It is worth noting that Tarand.io, founded by Mr. Hajizade, is a US-based startup which is currently the only publicly available solution that helps to raise awareness and combat malicious information activity, and Ukraine Crisis Media Center, the Hybrid Warfare Analytical Group is dedicated to supporting Ukraine and its international allies in developing effective strategies to preempt and address the threats posed by hybrid warfare.
The primary focus of HWAG is countering Russian propaganda, which has been a top priority since the full-scale war began.
During the event, an expert from the Ukraine Crisis Media Center, the Hybrid Warfare Analytical Group, Inna Polianska, thoroughly discussed the Russian Malicious Information Activity, in particular, how Russian propaganda manages to weaponize everything, even the things that appear to be impossible to be used for these purposes.
