Russia Escalates Disinformation Campaign in Poland Ahead of 2025 Election
As Poland prepares for the second round of the 2025 presidential election, Russian state-backed disinformation networks have intensified operations aimed at destabilizing Polish democracy, weakening public support for Ukraine, and eroding confidence in Western alliances.
The scope and aggressiveness of the campaign mark one of the Kremlin’s most coordinated interference efforts in Europe since the start of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
According to Polish authorities, Russian influence operations are combining cyberattacks, AI-generated propaganda, dark web recruitment, and fake media platforms to flood Polish information spaces with confusion and division. Intelligence agencies and analysts agree: Moscow is not just interfering—it is waging information warfare against a NATO and EU member state.
Russia’s Disinformation Playbook
At the core of Russia’s strategy is the “Doppelganger” operation—an expansive campaign that replicates the look and feel of trusted Polish news outlets to publish false or manipulative stories. These fakes are then amplified by bot networks across social media. The themes are consistent with Kremlin narratives: Ukraine is corrupt, Ukrainian refugees are a burden, and Poland is being dragged into a war by Washington and Brussels.
But the manipulation doesn’t stop at foreign policy. Russian operatives have targeted domestic Polish debates as well—focusing on polarizing issues like LGBTQ+ rights, abortion, and immigration to deepen social divides and inflame public discourse. The goal is to break internal cohesion and reduce public resilience in the face of external threats.
Cyberattacks and Dark Web Recruitment
In addition to propaganda, Russian services have stepped up direct attacks on Polish infrastructure. According to Poland’s Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski, the number of cyberattacks has more than doubled in 2025 alone. Targets have included government servers, energy grids, and water systems—part of a broader hybrid campaign aimed at undermining public trust and causing disruption.
Election Interference via Social Media
Investigations have also revealed massive spending on social media advertisements—many of them anonymously funded and designed to manipulate the upcoming election. Ads supporting or attacking candidates were used not to influence voters directly, but to spread confusion and discredit the process itself.
While Moscow hides behind denials and fake narratives of “neutrality,” its fingerprints are everywhere. Ukraine’s intelligence services have tracked similar operations targeting other European states, but Poland remains one of the primary targets due to its staunch support for Kyiv and its strategic position on NATO’s eastern flank.
Poland is not just defending its own election that saw Kremlin puppet Grzegorz Braun secure 6% of the vote.
It is on the front line of a continent-wide information war. Russia’s campaign against Poland is not about persuasion—it is about destabilization, fear, and sabotage. The West must take it as the warning it is.
Information war is WAR and Russia is escalating.