Russian narratives focused on Kaliningrad and elections, military says

Hostile information pressure against Lithuania remained low in August, while Russian information channels focused on alleged NATO threats to Kaliningrad and claims of Western interference in Russia’s upcoming State Duma elections, LRT reported, citing the Lithuanian Armed Forces.

The military said narratives also continued to allege that Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia were carried out using the airspace or territory of the Baltic states, alongside claims targeting Lithuania’s policy on historical memory.

At the beginning of August, Russian media largely focused on NATO reconnaissance aircraft operating in the region. By the end of the month, the same flights were presented as preparations for aggressive action, according to the Lithuanian Armed Forces.

Russia’s information space also widely referenced an August 17 article in Bild about possible NATO defence scenarios in response to Russian aggression against the Baltic states. The defensive scenarios described in the article were presented as alleged NATO plans to attack Kaliningrad. State Duma deputy Viktor Sobolev claimed that the alliance was preparing to occupy Kaliningrad, northwestern Russia and Karelia.

After a Ukrainian drone attack on the port of Ust-Luga in Leningrad Region on August 14, claims resurfaced that drones had reached Russian targets using Baltic airspace or territory. By the end of the month, NATO reconnaissance flights were linked to the attacks, with claims that the alliance was providing Kyiv with target coordinates.

Historical themes and Russian elections

The Lithuanian Armed Forces said historical issues also received attention. The 85th anniversary of the start of the Holocaust in Lithuania, which had been raised in June, was brought back into focus. A representative of Russia’s Foreign Ministry said at an official news conference that modern Lithuania allegedly denied the involvement of local nationalists in the Holocaust and presented collaborators as freedom fighters.

Towards the end of August, increasing attention was given to Russia’s domestic politics. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused Western countries of seeking to trigger another wave of Russophobic hysteria and delegitimise the results of the upcoming elections. She described the Baltic states as particularly zealous supporters of that policy.

Several days later, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke about alleged efforts by an opponent to intimidate Russian society and disrupt the elections. The Lithuanian Armed Forces said the Baltic states were consequently portrayed not only as alleged participants in military confrontation but also as instruments of Western pressure on Russia’s domestic political processes.