ANATOMY OF PROPAGANDA: TOP 3 EVENTS OF THE WEEK
31/07/2023, 09:00
The central theme of the Kremlin's positioning within Russia and on the international stage was the recent "Russia-Africa" summit held in St. Petersburg. The geopolitical influence was highlighted by the announcement of the international court judges being wanted. The propagandists' main headache becomes the systematic drone attacks.
The "Russia-Africa" summit took place on July 27-28. However, some individual events (bilateral meetings between Putin and the presidents of South Africa, Guinea-Bissau, Congo, transitional presidents of Burkina Faso and Mali) continued for several more days. Several African presidents have been present at the parade on the occasion of Navy Day on July 30 as the final chord. The summit became a reason for bewildering conclusions for the international observers: the level of representation significantly decreased (only 17 heads of state attended compared to 43 at the first similar event). Moreover, the African Union's communiqué and comments from the leaders of several African states, who were previously quite loyal to Russia, have explicitly voiced their criticism of Kremlin's international policies and demanded to return to the grain deal.
The intensity of air attacks on the capital region forces the propagandists to seek ways to explain the vulnerability of deep Russian territories to the population. There were at least three similar incidents during the reporting week: on Monday, Friday, and Sunday. The latest situation was particularly sensitive - the facades of two towers in "Moscow-City" were damaged. However, even these events are presented by the official media as successes of air defence.
The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) declared Tomoko Akane, a judge of the International Criminal Court, wanted under a criminal article for issuing an arrest warrant against the President of Russia. These actions are legally insignificant and are implemented solely for information-psychological purposes. The "sovereign indignation" of Russian law enforcement is aimed at the domestic audience, filled with narratives about Russia's self-sufficiency as a geopolitical centre of influence.
