“InfoDéfense”, the pro-Russian propaganda channel

On the social network Telegram one can find the channel “InfoDéfense”, which delivers messages very oriented on the war in Ukraine. ‘West fighting Russia to grab its resources, says former Pentagon chief adviser’, can we read in particular. On the channel, there are translated articles, videos of Russian media or even the transcription of speeches by representatives of the Kremlin. On its home page, “InfoDéfense” presents itself as “a team of volunteers from all over the world” and claims to say “the truth that the majority of the media prefer not to broadcast”.

The French version followed by 13,000 Internet users

At the origin of this chain, there would be Yuri Podolyaka, a Ukrainian blogger based in Crimea who at the beginning of the war was looking for volunteers to translate his pro-Russian messages internationally. Today, “InfoDéfense” has more than twenty channels on Telegram in different languages. Particularly active, the French version is followed by more than 13,000 people. In a survey published on its website, The world unveils a highly structured organization made up of around forty voluntary participants. Discretion rules are made for contributors who must not display their profile picture or their real name, buy prepaid SIM cards for their phone. But for the time being, there is nothing to prove any link between its Telegram channels and the Russian power.