humanity is at war, the leaders stress again and again. Against an unseen but powerful enemy, just a ten-thousandth of a Millimeter in size. But even if the Coronavirus has changed the lifestyles of billions of people, including unprecedented restrictions of freedom of movement and rights, of economic and public life: The political contradictions of the world has Covid-19 do not put out of force.
tensions between The US and China, the different interests of the West and Russia, the permanent crises in the middle East – have you all found in the pandemic just another battleground in a long-lasting information war.
The rages all the more intense because, in these times so many people have to stay at home, and there is a lot of spend time on social networks. Already on the 2. February, the world health organization of a massive “Infodemie”. The Excess of information – true and false – make it difficult for people to find trusted sources. At the Munich security conference in mid-February, the WHO Director General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus after put: “Fake News spread faster and easier than the Virus – and are just as dangerous.” Since then, it has become better.
Russian disinformation
On the 22. January was read at Sputnik News, the Virus was man-made, a NATO-created weapon. That was the first of EUvsDisinfo registered wrong information in the matter of Corona from Russian sources. The European external action service-based project observed since 2015 Russian disinformation campaigns in 15 languages.
The wrong message about the production of the Corona-Virus in US Biolaboren about, write the EUvsDisinfo analysts, has been widely used, among other things, Sputnik Arabic service. Your USA-critical attitude made the audience particularly prone to this conspiracy theory: dozens of Arabic sites acquisitions with the supposed message, including a fake BBC page.
The professionals at EUvsDisinfo watching a steady stream of disinformation from Russian or Kremlin-affiliated media: The Fake News to follow always the same pattern: The Pentagon was it; the ruling elites stuck behind the Corona; the U.S. hegemony is to be secured; a new tyrannical world order is the goal.
In one of the news Agency Reuters this internal EU document campaign is a comprehensive disinformation the speech. Russia intends to intensify the effect of the Corona-Virus, generate panic and doubt. The allegations, which was denied by Moscow immediately.
The Kremlin-affiliated media promoting conflicting theories. Once the pandemic is a hoax, then again, apocalyptic scenarios will be drawn from the collapse of the Schengen system, the dissolution of Nato, or even the collapse of the Baltic States. In a crisis, in which it depended on trust and cooperation, the conclusion of the EUvsDisinfo professionals, try the disinformation machinery of the Kremlin solidarity to undermine.
a diplomat close whisper
In the US there is a counterpart to EUvsDisinfo. Located at the Ministry of foreign Affairs, the Global Engagement Center, GEC examined, in addition to Russian disinformation is also false reports and Propaganda from Chinese, Iranian, and Islamist sources. Last Friday, the GEC special Ambassador Lea Gabrielle via a video briefing, spoke up.
The former CIA agent has described an “Ecosystem” in which Russian, Chinese and Iranian false information, and reinforced each other: for example, If the Russian platforms, distributed a hoax, these would be taken up often by the Chinese media. This would, in turn, retweeted from Russia, as if they came directly from China.
An example for Playing a wrong message to multiple corners of the Tweets of a Chinese diplomat from the middle of March. 12. March writes Zhao Lijian, the Corona broke out in the fall of 2019 in the United States, and calls for information to “Patient Zero”.
the next day, the spokesman for Beijing’s Ministry of foreign Affairs provided an article from Global Research, with the note, to share the but please continue to post. The canadian Montreal-based website is presenting itself as a Think-Tank, but in Essence, conspiracy theories. In this case, The Corona-Virus was supposedly from the US participants in the World Military Games had been brought in last October, in Wuhan, after China.
hoax carousel
The Global Research article is based, in turn, a contribution to the “Global Times” of China. The English-language campaign of the Communist party refers in its turn to Chinese scientists. If the are then distributed via a detour from a Western source – in the case of Global Research, they sound significantly trusted.
at Least a dozen Chinese embassies around the world to spread Zhao Lijians Tweet more. In the end, he had more than 12,000 Retweets and over 20,000 Likes.
Meanwhile, the Chinese Propaganda should have changed, however, their direction of impact, has observed the GEC. Now no longer the United States would blacken as the author of the Virus. Instead, the success of the Chinese authorities will now put in Virus eradication at the centre – and the United States criticized to stigmatize China as the origin of the Virus.
Corona – or China-Virus?
In Washington, President Donald Trump attaches great importance to describe the Corona Virus as the “China-Virus”.
His foreign Minister, Mike Pompeo keeps it geographically accurate with the “Wuhan-Virus”. Last Wednesday failed in a joint statement of the seven major industrial States in the name dispute.
In a video conference, the G-7 foreign Ministers of the United States wanted to emphasize the Chinese origin of the Virus than the Europeans. US Secretary of state Mike Pompeo accused China, held information, the Virus to spread deliberately false information about the origins of the pandemic. “They were the first country that knew of the risks of this Virus for the world, and they have delayed the disclosure of this information is repeated,” said Pompeo.
in addition, the US Secretary of state, complained, the senior members of the party had spread “crazy talk” that the United States would have brought the Virus to China.
recrimination
Certainly the U.S. would be the American complaints about Chinese cover-up attempts at the beginning of the Corona epidemic of convincing, would not have played the Trump Administration even week of the dangers of the Virus down.
Also: high-ranking Republicans are not too bad to Express wild conspiracy theories on TV. Approximately in February, Tom Cotton to the US channel Fox. As implied, the Republican Senator, a biology lab in Wuhan, the source of the pandemic was.
a Particularly tragic it is, if conspiracy theories have very real consequences. So, as Iran’s spiritual leader Ali Khamenei said in a speech to the Nation, Covid-19 was a bioweapon, an American, and an American offer of aid rejected brusquely. “No one trusts you,” said the Ayatollah, the US government turned.
Even the non-governmental organization Doctors without borders empty-handed had to remove from Isfahan, with its auxiliary the hospital for 50 patients. Hardliners are said to have been against the commitment of Doctors without borders, because if it were the experts, supposedly to Western spies. This assessment will pay some of the Iranians are expected to be with the life.
author: Matthias von Hein
mouth protection, prey protection, Wuhan-Tool: these are the best life hacks for the Corona-crisis FOCUS Online/Wochit mouth protection, prey protection, Wuhan-Tool: these are the best life hacks for the Corona-crisis Where Coronavirus occurs? Real-time map showing the spread of the disease, FOCUS Online/Wochit Where is Coronavirus? Real-time map showing the spread of the disease
*The contribution of “Massive “Infodemie”: Russia, the USA and China bring Fake News-merry-go-round” will be released by Deutsche Welle. Contact with the executives here.
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