Russia Intensifies Disinformation Campaign in Latin America, U.S. Officials Warn

Russian disinformation efforts across Latin America have dramatically escalated over the past two years, according to a U.S. diplomatic cable and recent watchdog reports. These campaigns appear strategically designed to drive a wedge between the United States and its regional allies, with Mexico emerging as a primary target.

The Kremlin’s media expansion is spearheaded by state-owned outlets Sputnik and RT (formerly Russia Today), which have aggressively increased their Spanish-language content and reach. An April 2024 diplomatic cable from the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City, titled “Mexico: RT’s Invasion,” raised serious concerns about this development.

“RT’s aggressive investment in Mexico and its strategy to build its credibility and undermine the United States poses a threat to current popular perception,” the cable stated. American diplomats have requested additional resources to counter what they described as “well-funded efforts” by Russian media.

The impact of this expansion is substantial. According to the cable, RT en Español’s audience on X (formerly Twitter) exploded from just 191,000 views in 2022 to a staggering 715 million views a year later. This growth coincides with RT being largely blocked in Europe and the United States, suggesting a strategic pivot toward Latin America’s potential audience of 670 million people.

The Russian Embassy in Mexico City has denied spreading disinformation, characterizing Sputnik and RT as unbiased alternatives to American media outlets. However, a 2024 U.S. Justice Department investigation identified a Russian government-sponsored influence campaign called “Doppelgänger” targeting American citizens and Washington’s allies.

“The campaign intended to encourage ‘anti-American sentiment’ as well as to exacerbate confrontation between the United States and Mexico,” according to a Justice Department affidavit in the case, which resulted in the shutdown of several websites involved in the operation.

Political dynamics in Mexico may have facilitated this expansion. The embassy cable partially attributed RT’s growth to “allegedly sympathetic abettors” in former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration. López Obrador’s term ended in October, but his Morena party remains in power and includes officials reportedly sympathetic to Russia. British and French officials have also raised concerns with Mexico’s foreign ministry about Russian activities, according to sources familiar with the discussions.

One example of Russian disinformation gaining traction involves claims made by former Russian President Dmitri Medvedev that Ukraine and the United States were recruiting Mexican and Colombian drug cartels to fight against Russia. These accusations were amplified by the Russian Embassy in Mexico City and shared by several Morena politicians, despite being based on distortions of stories about Colombian veterans who independently volunteered to fight for Ukraine.

Jenaro Villamil, head of Mexico’s State Broadcasting System, has regularly shared Russian government media content on social media. While Villamil maintained that his personal account does not represent the government, his position oversees TV and radio stations with nationwide reach. Last year, he shared a Sputnik article suggesting U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration involvement in the 2021 assassination of Haiti’s president, despite evidence contradicting this narrative.

Beyond Mexico, RT has conducted journalist training sessions across Latin America. A recent investigation by the German Marshall Fund and Factchequeado revealed that during RT training for journalists in Venezuela, attendees erupted into chants of “Long live Russia!” and “Long live Putin!”

In Mexico, RT has established a partnership with the Journalists Club, an industry association that has received funding from Mexico’s Senate. The club’s biweekly magazine now sources approximately 53 percent of its content from Kremlin-owned media outlets, according to researchers. Mouris Salloum George, the club’s president, explained they began republishing Russian government media because RT offered free content.

Western experts express concern that the United States is being outmatched in this information war, especially after the Trump administration reduced resources for countering disinformation.

“This is the problem: You have the U.S. retreating from the information space globally, and in comes Russia,” said Bret Schafer, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund. “To gain influence, Latin America has long been seen as a priority for the Russians.”