Trying to influence the political landscape in Germany ahead of the state elections (Landtagswahlen) in September 2026, Russia has launched a new wave of disinformation campaigns on social media. The operation aims to undermine Germans’ trust in almost all major political parties in the Federal Republic of Germany — with the exception of the Kremlin’s two clear favorites: the AfD and the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW).
Despite belonging to opposite ideological wings, both projects are distinctly pro-Russian and openly declare their readiness to cooperate with Moscow. What unites them is the demand to end military aid to Ukraine, lift sanctions, and return to buying cheap Russian energy carriers. Russia’s goal is to create the most favorable information environment for boosting the ratings and strengthening the positions of the AfD by artificially discrediting its political opponents.
The current information operation is a direct continuation of the already familiar Doppelgänger and Matryoshka campaigns, well-known to European intelligence services and journalists. It replicates their signature methods and style: cloning reputable media outlets, spreading fake materials, and using bot networks that post favorable comments to simulate “public reaction.”
Russian involvement was confirmed after a 2024 email hack and leak of internal documents from the Russian Agency for Social Design (SDA). The documents discussed and described the very disinformation narratives, fake articles, and smear materials to be disseminated through cloned fake accounts in the European information space. SDA acts as one of the Kremlin’s main technological contractors, developing and implementing information campaigns under the direct supervision of Sergey Kiriyenko, First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation, who is responsible, among other things, for the information and propaganda direction. The fact that this agency is coordinated at the highest level shows that the Kremlin regards information technologies and AI as a full-fledged weapon in its geopolitical confrontation with the West.
According to researchers from the Antibot4Navalny group, in just the first week of the campaign in July 2026, at least 49 fake videos, 12 fabricated newspaper pages, and one fake graffiti image were detected. The materials were spread on X, Bluesky, and TikTok, imitating the branding of well-known German media outlets such as Spiegel TV, Bild, and T-Online. They exaggerated social problems to pit eastern Germans against western ones and disseminated overtly biased and false information about the actions of the current federal government.
In July 2026, Der Spiegel conducted an analysis of suspicious publications and found that all bot-network materials followed a similar pattern. They always featured a politician from The Left, the Greens, the SPD, the CDU, or the FDP, accused of fictitious crimes and misconduct — including attending secret sex parties, money laundering through nursing homes, and embezzlement of funds from animal shelters. Deepfake pornography featuring politicians from parties that take a hard line against Russia was also detected.
Another notable feature of the June–July 2026 disinformation campaign was the wave of attacks against the Alliance 90/The Greens, which advocates for decarbonization and phasing out fossil fuels. Fake messages claimed that Germany would “freeze,” “shut down all factories,” and that ordinary people would “die in poverty” due to the rejection of Russian gas. The Greens were portrayed as “American puppets” acting in the interests of U.S. business and destroying their own country. This rhetoric fully aligns with traditional Russian propaganda narratives.
It is worth noting that Germany’s and Europe’s transition to renewable energy and the development of the “green economy” is highly undesirable for the Kremlin, as it threatens to destroy Russia’s business model, which relies on oil and gas exports and attempts to restore Europe’s energy dependence. A successful green transition would deprive Russia of major revenues and important levers of energy and political blackmail.
Der Spiegel journalists also noted that all fake publications followed a single template: they contained fabricated quotes and pseudo-news videos edited from archival footage of international news agencies. For credibility, they used logos of reputable German media brands such as Bild, FAZ, or Stern TV. The audio was voiced by an AI-generated English-speaking voice that does not match the real practices of these outlets. In one such video, Left party leader Heidi Reichinnek was accused of embezzling party funds. In another video with the FAZ logo, it was claimed that the Green party leader had been found with Nazi literature and exposed for lobbying LGBT interests — claims that were, of course, false. Signs of forgery also included design inconsistencies with real media templates and the absence of these materials on the official websites of Bild, FAZ, or Stern TV.
Russian bot networks in the German information space actively exploit public concern over the country’s economic situation, which has worsened due to high energy prices, inflation, and industrial decline. They also inflame debates around migration policy and the pace of the ecological transition, turning neutral and constructive discussion into aggressive online confrontation. Additionally, they exploit the predominantly pacifist sentiments among Germans and stoke fears of a hypothetical conflict with Russia if it continues to provide military-political support to Ukraine.
The upcoming autumn state elections will be decisive for the future of the entire Federal Republic of Germany. Strengthening the AfD’s positions at the regional level could significantly complicate the adoption of necessary decisions at the legislative and national levels, not to mention hindering the smooth and effective work of the federal government. Understanding this, the Kremlin is channeling significant financial resources into these information campaigns, seeking to create favorable conditions for the victory of its favorites through disinformation and to destroy Germany’s internal consensus — and with it, European unity.