DRI’s report is the result of social media monitoring, conducted in March-April 2022, covering and analyzing the messages and main tendencies of manipulative discourse from the far-right media and openly pro-Russian political actors against the backdrop of the Russia-Ukraine war.

Well-known pro-Russian and ultra-right-wing media platforms and political actors are trying to spread the idea that the Russia-Ukraine war was provoked by the Ukrainian authorities, and instigated by the Western powers.

“Alt-Info”, the primary platform of the Kremlin disinformation campaign in Georgia has been covering the ongoing war in Ukraine through special broadcasts. During the reporting period, somewhat of a tendency has been established, where Georgian Dream and Alt-Info have been making similar statements, trying to discredit the Ukrainian government. The hosts of "Alt-Info" expressed their support for the Georgian government for not joining with the sanctions imposed on Russia. They also expressed solidarity and support for Bidzina Ivanishvili, the founder of the Georgian Dream, when audio recordings of an alleged conversation between him and sanctioned Russian oligarch Vladimir Evtushenkov were leaked to the media. „Alt-Info“ team welcomed this information and demanded the Georgian government expand trade and economic relations with Russia.

“Alt-Info” hosts, who are also the leaders of the openly pro-Kremlin “Conservative Party”, were actively making pro-Russian statements, normalizing the Kremlin's aggressive military intervention, and spreading misinformation against Ukraine during the reporting period. It must be mentioned that Georgian Communications Commission saw the signs of war propaganda in their messaging on March 24, 2022.

Political forces known in Georgia for their openly pro-Russian and far-right sentiments have become noticeably more active against the backdrop of Russian military intervention, trying to “deepen” cooperation with Russia.

On April 4, 2022, a month and a half after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the leaders of the Alliance of Patriots of Georgia Irma Inashvili and Davit Tarkhan-Mouravi, held an official meeting with representatives of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly in Russia.

The news about the visit was spread by the official website of the Russian Federal Council as well. According to the information provided by the website, Davit Tarkhan-Mouravi briefed Russian officials on the activities of the Alliance of Patriots of Georgia, highlighting that the party supports Georgia’s Neutrality status. At the meeting, the leader of the Alliance of Patriots of Georgia stressed the importance of maintaining mutually beneficial relations between Russia and Georgia. For his part, Vladimir Jabanov stated that - "Our countries have centuries-old friendship and I am sure that there are many people in Georgia who are in favor of expanding contacts with Russia." Alliance of Patriots of Georgia has yet to make an official statement about the visit. 

Dimitri Lortkipanidze, head of the openly pro-Russian Primakov Georgian-Russian Community Center, also paid an official visit to Moscow. He was the Chair of the meeting, organized by the Russian government-established Gorchakov Public Diplomacy Support Foundation and Primakov Center, held on March 24 in Moscow.


Preventing Far-Right Extremism in Georgia
Far-Right Rhetoric and Trends in Social Media