Russia allocated a record $1.85 billion for foreign propaganda operations in its 2026 federal budget, a 54% increase from the previous year, according to Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service in a response to Liga.net on May 9.
Ukraine’s intelligence agency disclosed the figure in response to a Liga.net query, attributing the spending to Moscow’s information sector. The agency stated that the funds bankroll the systemic promotion of Russian narratives in European capitals such as Brussels, Vienna, and Luxembourg.
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According to the intelligence service, the budget sustains Russian state offices abroad, finances networks of “Russian Houses,”
supports loyal foreign organizations, and launches new information platforms.
Investigators noted that after the European Union adopted its 20th sanctions package, which targeted pro-Russian media, Kremlin operators began rolling out mirror sites stripped of overtly pro-Russian sloganeering. The reworked outlets often feature interviews with European academics who claim they are being pushed out of their posts for calling for peace with Russia.
The “peace” messaging is meant to “create a suffering image” of Russia and frame Ukraine as the party blocking an end to the war, according to the intelligence service. Investigators also cited recycled Kremlin lines portraying Europe as weary of the war and arguing that Moscow cannot be isolated.
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Oh great, .ml and hexbear are getting mroe members.
Lmao, 2bn?
I wonder what the ppp on foreign (global?) propaganda is.That’s not even in the top 25 megacorps (“marketing”).
(Or a fraction of what gets presidents elected in USA - even if you divide the number my 4 years.)Just as a comparison, USA federal (~DOD) advertising (so not exactly the same) budget is around 2bn, prob higher with the new recruiting.
We hate them, but those Russian propagandists know how to make a dollar holler. Their hybrid warfare and paid troll brigades have done an outsized amount of damage. Crazy to hear it might soon get even more intense.
Long story short:
Those weird looking Japanese robot wolves ain't got shit on a ton of thumbs. Even if you don't have a bunch of datacenters, you can pay babushka to downvote posts that say stuff like "Donald Trump is Agent Krasnov" or "Release the Unedited Epstein Files".Release the Unedited Epstein Files
🚨 Babushkas, gettem!
Nice work,
spread the word,
Stay strong
It’s so mind boggling to see such amounts of money thrown at operations that make the world a worse place for everyone. And the rest of the world has people gullible enough to fall for Putin’s propaganda.
I’m guessing this is for Europe, as they already got the US thoroughly fucked by now.
Lol, we are more expensive, but just a little bit.
It is one of their most important war investments. Getting their people or people corrupt enough or sympathetic enough for their ends, into places of power in Western democracies or at least, destroying those democracies, is the way to win for them. That budget plays a big role in that.
