Zelensky says countering Russian propaganda, preventing sanctions circumvention are key challenges today

President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that among major challenges in countering Russian aggression are the fight against disinformation spread by Russia and preventing Russia from circumventing sanctions.

The President of Ukraine stated this in his speech at the annual Swedish national conference "Society and Defense," Ukrinform reports, referring to the president’s press service.

According to Zelensky, global information policy will be crucial in the near future.

"Today, unfortunately, Russia controls a large percentage of the information space. And I'm not talking about Ukraine here, but about social media everywhere in the civilized world: Europe, the United States, the UK, the African continent and Latin America. Russia invests a lot of money in various media in other countries, as well as in social networks," Zelensky said.

According to the President, the independent media of these countries pick up Russian narratives spread by propagandists and present them not as someone's opinion, but as reality. Therefore, the Head of State is convinced that one of the most difficult challenges today is to combat Russian disinformation in the world.

"It is up to professionals, from intelligence to independent journalists, to monitor it and clean it up," the President said.

The second key challenge of today, as pointed out by Volodymyr Zelensky, is Russia's circumvention of the sanctions imposed against it.

"Russia has learned to circumvent sanctions. In the missiles that were used against us, we saw the details produced in many countries around the world. Unfortunately, manufacturers or intermediary companies in Europe, the US, and elsewhere are helping Russia to circumvent (sanctions – ed.). And I would pay attention to this, in particular the attention of the authorities dealing with sanctions policy," Zelensky stressed.

The annual national conference "Society and Defense," which takes place in Sälen on January 7-9, 2024, is considered the most prestigious in Sweden and is one of the most important public events in Northern Europe that focuses security and defense, widely covered by the Swedish and European media.

Photo: President’s Office