Russian state actors on Facebook and foreign information manipulation and interference in the Adriatic and Balkan regions

The main goal of this research was to determine whether Russia engages in online information manipulation and interference activities through Facebook profiles of its embassies, aiming to distort the truth and craft narratives that align with its interests. The objective is to identify efforts to distort factual truths and construct narratives aligned with Russian interests. These nations were chosen based on their linguistic similarities and varying degrees of European-Atlantic integration.

Key findings:
• Identified a specific percentage of posts related to foreign disinformation  and  interference  on  the  Facebook  accounts  of  Russian embassies in the Balkans
• Disinformation and information manipulation efforts were present before the conflict in Ukraine; however, the war in Ukraine marked 
the period with the largest increase in such activities.
• Identified the most prevalent topics within Russian disinformation and manipulation efforts across the embassies of Russia in the 
Balkan and Adriatic regions
• The Russian Embassy in Montenegro has been identified as the most  active  embassy  and  perpetrator  of  disinformation  in  the  
Balkan region.