Russian Propaganda Infiltrates Italian Social Media, Analysis Reveals

The extensive reach of Russian disinformation campaigns on Italian social media platforms has become a growing concern for European security experts, according to a new analysis that examines how pro-Kremlin narratives have infiltrated mainstream online discourse.

A study conducted by Stefano Braghiroli, Associate Professor of European Studies at the University of Tartu, reveals how Russian information warfare tactics have found particularly fertile ground in Italy’s digital landscape, where anti-NATO and anti-Western sentiments easily spread through social media channels.

Described by The Guardian in 2023 as “a success for Kremlin propaganda,” Italy has become one of Europe’s most susceptible countries to Russian disinformation due to a unique combination of political factors. These include longstanding anti-American sentiments within the historical left and authoritarian nostalgia on the conservative right.

While Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 briefly dampened the most overt expressions of pro-Russian sentiment, Moscow has since intensified efforts to undermine Rome’s support for Kyiv. This influence operation has been particularly effective on social media platforms, whose open and unfiltered nature allows such narratives to spread rapidly.

To demonstrate how deeply these narratives have penetrated public discourse, Braghiroli analyzed over one thousand anonymous comments responding to a mainstream news post about NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte’s warning that Russian missiles could reach European capitals. The findings revealed consistent patterns aligning with known Kremlin messaging strategies.

Among the most prevalent narratives was an inversion of aggressor-victim dynamics, with many users portraying NATO—not Russia—as the primary threat to peace. European leadership figures were routinely depicted as corrupt or incompetent, while the Russian threat was consistently downplayed or denied entirely.

“Ukraine is rarely depicted as a victim,” Braghiroli notes. “Instead, the conflict is framed as a bilateral quarrel between two states—’a war between cousins,’ ‘a conflict that has nothing to do with us.'” This framing, which strips the invasion of its moral dimensions, serves to justify Italian disengagement from supporting Ukraine.

The emotional landscape of these discussions revealed a striking imbalance: approximately 90 percent of comments expressed negative sentiments toward NATO, the EU, or Western institutions, while Russia received very few explicitly negative mentions and was often defended directly or indirectly.

Many commenters accused NATO and Western media of manufacturing fear to justify increased defense spending, with frequent references to the Cold War that trivialize current security concerns. Others portrayed Putin as rational and restrained, merely responding to NATO encroachment—directly echoing official Kremlin talking points.

Anti-American sentiment underpins much of this discourse, with the United States repeatedly characterized as manipulating European institutions for its own profit or global dominance. Users frequently drew false equivalencies between Russia’s actions in Ukraine and Western involvement in other conflicts, particularly regarding Israel’s operations in Gaza—another narrative central to Kremlin information strategy.

These findings expose the vulnerability of democratic societies to foreign interference through social media platforms. As Braghiroli argues, recognizing these patterns is the first step toward countering their influence: “Understanding how ordinary users—often unconsciously—reproduce Kremlin framings allows policymakers and analysts to target not only the symptoms but also the social conditions that sustain them.”

The research highlights a broader challenge facing European democracies as they contend with increasingly sophisticated information warfare tactics. While particularly pronounced in Italy, similar vulnerabilities exist throughout Europe, where authoritarian powers can exploit existing social divisions and political cynicism to advance their strategic interests.

For European security officials, the study underscores the urgent need to develop more effective counter-disinformation strategies that address not just the content of false narratives, but also the underlying social and political factors that make them resonate with public audiences.