is there a bridge between the opponents of the health pass and the supporters of Vladimir Putin?

The France Télévisions teams have found defenders of Vladimir Poutine in France. Richard Boutry, a figure in the fight against anti-Covid vaccines, now gives a pro-Putin speech, evoking the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Oliv Oliv, followed by more than 160,000 people on Facebook, also opposed to the health policies of the government, also recites arguments in favor of Russia.

Many popular accounts in the anti-vaccine communities now deliver messages in favor of the Russian regime. “These are speeches that work to invert realities, to present authoritarians as democrats, and democrats as dictators”, analyzes Marie Peltier, historian and teacher at the Higher Institute of Pedagogy. The proximity between anti-vaccine and pro-Putin discourse can be explained by several reasons: the sustained presence of the far right in both movements, but also anti-system thinking. However, not all activists against the health pass are supporters of the Russian invasion.