Russian military intelligence is involved in a campaign to discredit the wife of French President Emmanuel Macron and female politicians in Europe, according to specialists from the Robert Lansing Institute (RLI).
The research group reports that Moscow is using disinformation to undermine the reputations of the wives of politicians and female politicians in Europe, focusing on gender and sexist issues.
One example of such a campaign was the appearance of an article by French journalist Natasha Rey, who claimed that Brigitte Macron was allegedly a man. Shortly after the publication, Rey expressed her desire to move to Russia and seek political asylum there. It is reported that she sought help from Russian deputy Pyotr Tolstoy, who is linked to the Russian Ministry of Defense.
Researchers believe that Natasha Rey might have been acting as an influence agent, gathering information for the Kremlin under the guise of journalism. Her connections to French far-right groups also raise suspicions. Previously, the Faits et documents magazine, founded by far-right activist Emmanuel Rathier, published an investigation into France's first lady. This magazine has been repeatedly accused of anti-Semitism and spreading conspiracy theories.
The actions of Russian intelligence resemble the disinformation campaign in 2016 when the "Pizzagate" theory was launched to discredit the Democratic Party candidate in the U.S. Similar methods were used to support the Yellow Vest protests and anti-vaccine campaigns in Europe.
RLI also suggests that Melania Trump became one of the targets of Russian discreditation operations. Russian media, particularly Russia Today, played an active role in spreading such materials and were used by Russian intelligence for psychological operations.
