How Russia Leverages Division and Crisis to Destroy its Adversaries - Interview with Monique Camarra

We’ve been at war with Russia since at least 2008, but for most of that time were not aware of it. The financial crash of 2008 unleashed a wave of instability and change across thew world, and Russian propagandists started to pour petrol on the flames from the start. Since the troll factories in Russia have sought to leverage divisions within western nations, as well as Eastern Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. There has been wave after wave of crisis – growing pains of the 21st century – Georgia, Maidan, Crimea, Donbas, Brexit, Trump, Ukraine. Although Russia did not initiate all these crises, they have ceaselessly probed to gain advantage from them, and sow discord among adversaries. The techniques they use are disturbing similarities to Nazi propaganda methods but updated for the Digital age. Even though this propaganda can seem crude, absurd, and contradictory, it is alarmingly effective, especially in countries across Africa and the Middle East, Hungary, Serbia, and Italy.

Monique Camarra lives in Siena and is a language instructor at the Department of Communication at the University of Siena. She runs language and political communications courses, but has also run for office in her city, and has been politically active for several years, and comes from a family with a strong heritage of political activism. Monique studied International History at the LSE, London. She became acutely aware of Russia after the financial crash of 2008, when hard left and right populism took hold in Italian politics. Monique observed and documented the rise of the 5 Star movement, Salvini, and others closely. She started podcasting out of a need to educate and inform, and is now co-host on three channels, including The Kremlin File with Olga Lautman.