Latest Articles about Influence Operations

Russia Expands Foothold in East Africa
Executive Summary: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced plans in February to increase Russian involvement in Africa, as Russia’s Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Dmitry Volvach, expects that Russian-African trade will double in the next five years. Russia is expanding its influence in Africa through... MORE

Moscow Confuses U.S. Reductions of Key Russia-Watching Organizations as Signs of Weakness Rather Than Readiness for Genuine Dialogue
Executive Summary: Russian media has misinterpreted the U.S. reductions of organizations such as Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) as signs of U.S. weakness rather than signals that Washington is prepared for genuine dialogue with Moscow. Kremlin-aligned figures celebrate the reduction as a blow to U.S.... MORE

Sweden’s SÄPO Reports that Russia is Evolving Sabotage Tactics
Executive Summary: Sweden’s Security Service warns of an alarming shift in Russian espionage tactics, involving the recruitment of individuals suffering from substance addiction for sabotage missions as part of a broader hybrid warfare strategy targeting Sweden and Europe. Sweden’s recent accession to the North Atlantic... MORE

Anti-Western Rhetoric Intensifying in Russian Media
Executive Summary: The Kremlin seeks to restore normal relations with the West as a bargaining chip for negotiations on Russia’s war against Ukraine, despite intensifying anti-European rhetoric in Russian media. Pro-Kremlin analysts, especially from military-linked outlets, increasingly accuse Europe of Nazism and suggest deliberate strategies... MORE

PRC Malign influence at Home and Abroad—Peter Mattis’s Testimony Before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
The following is a lightly edited version of testimony delivered by Jamestown President Peter Mattis. The testimony was delivered before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee at a hearing held on January 30, 2025, on the topic “The Malign Influence of The People's Republic of China... MORE

The Party’s One-Way Approach to People-to-People Exchanges
Executive Summary: The People’s Republic of China (PRC) frames people-to-people exchange programs as benign cultural and educational efforts, but in reality, they serve to advance the Chinese Communist Party’s agendas—such as the “community of common destiny for mankind”—and bolster the PRC’s geopolitical aims. While the... MORE

Russia’s Information Security Industry Expands International Footprint
Executive Summary: Russian information security companies are expanding their operations in Russia’s near abroad despite facing limitations caused by Western sanctions, as other states increasingly view internet freedom as a threat to their sovereignty. Russian contractors are also working alongside the Kremlin to draw on... MORE

Russian IT Sector Effectively Serves the Kremlin Despite Sanctions
Executive Summary: Moscow continues to leverage modern technology in its hybrid warfare against the West and in carrying out cyber-attacks despite sanctions. The Kremlin employs cutting-edge technologies to create an illusionary reality within Russia to promote propaganda about its war against Ukraine and has access... MORE

Strangers on a Seabed: Sino-Russian Collaboration on Undersea Cable Sabotage Operations
Executive Summary: Recent suspicious activities conducted by the merchant vessels Shunxing-39 and Vasili Shukshin in the vicinity of Taiwan in early 2025 suggest possible collaboration between Chinese and Russian merchant ships related to the reconnaissance and sabotage of undersea communications cables that connect Taiwan to... MORE

Moscow Increases Pressure on Separatist Abkhazia Ahead of Presidential Elections
Executive Summary: Abkhazia, a break-away territory controlled by Russia, is preparing for decisive presidential elections on February 15, which could determine the future trajectory of the separatist region’s foreign policy and relationship to Moscow. Russia is supporting pro-Moscow candidate, former vice-president Badra Gunba, in the... MORE