Russian disinformation network exploited French unrest to undermine support for Ukraine, EU report says

The network, known as Operation Overload, circulated fabricated videos impersonating Western news outlets. Some falsely claimed that migrants had raped protesters or warned of imminent terrorist attacks.

The EU assessment, covering October 7–21, found that the operation sought to depict French leaders as "weak and increasingly authoritarian" as demonstrations over rising living costs and deteriorating public services escalated into violent unrest.

"Such events offer opportunities to undermine national governments, fuel fear and division, and shape public perceptions ahead of elections," the restricted-circulation EU document said.

Crucially, the assessment found no evidence that Russia or other foreign actors had instigated or intensified the protests. It described the activity as "the opportunistic exploitation of unrest."

France has experienced weeks of demonstrations that began in September over conditions in public schools and later expanded into broader protests over living costs and public services. Some demonstrations descended into clashes with police, arson and looting.

How the campaign targeted Ukraine

According to the EU report, Operation Overload has been active since September 2023, targeting Western public figures, institutions and media organizations to undermine trust in them and discredit their support for Ukraine.

During the French unrest, the network also promoted claims that European governments were prioritizing Ukraine over domestic problems - a narrative intended to weaken public backing for Kyiv.

The operation uses videos disguised as legitimate news reports, fabricated headlines, manipulated images and artificial intelligence-generated imitations of experts' voices, according to research by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, a British-based think tank.

French authorities have previously identified similar Russian-linked campaigns during elections, protests and other politically sensitive events.

MAGA-linked and Israeli accounts drew far more views

A separate internal assessment by France's foreign ministry found that social media accounts linked to the US MAGA movement and to Israeli officials and influencers also promoted what it called "hostile narratives" about the unrest, connecting it to immigration and radical Islamism.

The French assessment estimated that the 10 most-viewed posts about the unrest from pro-Russian accounts on X received 2.8 million views between October 16 and 18.

By comparison, the 10 most-viewed posts from MAGA-linked officials, media outlets and influencers received more than 49 million views during the same period. The equivalent figure for posts from Israeli officials, government accounts, media outlets and influencers exceeded 35 million.

The findings do not establish that these groups coordinated their messaging or that all the posts were false.

Elina Treyger, a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation, described such efforts as a long-running "narrative competition" that can influence perceptions of Western democracies and intensify anti-immigrant sentiment.

Reuters said it could not independently verify the assertions in either the EU or French government assessment.

What officials say

French President Emmanuel Macron said on October 21 that there had been no visible foreign interference behind the protests themselves, but that there had been "foreign manipulation of information."

Russia's foreign ministry did not respond to Reuters' request for comment. Moscow has previously denied French allegations of disinformation operations, calling them politically motivated.

The Israeli prime minister's office and foreign ministry also did not respond to requests for comment.

The EU findings illustrate how disinformation campaigns can exploit genuine domestic grievances without creating the underlying protests - and how narratives about European governments neglecting their own citizens can be used to weaken support for Ukraine.