In the ongoing power struggle between the United States, China, and Russia, each superpower utilizes propaganda to promote its own version of democracy or autocracy.

The final communique of last weekend’s G-7 summit left no doubt that the West views Russia as a malign global player and enemy, and considers China to be a competitor, rival and potential threat. That is the position among the governments and leaders of the world’s richest democracies. But what about the world’s population at large?

Russia has been using propaganda to spread misinformation about the Ukraine war, and its state-owned news agency Sputnik has been a key tool in this effort.

The Russia-Ukraine war has had major global implications. Some disruptions appear relatively straightforward to solve, but the realm of information security does not lend itself to quick fixes. Central and Eastern Europe provides several hard-learned lessons in how Russian disinformation is used and how it might be countered.