Russia is ramping up its disinformation campaign on social media platform TikTok, targeting Polish users in a bid to stir hostility toward Ukrainians and erode public support for Kyiv, a Polish security expert has warned.
Three years after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Poland remains one of Kyiv’s staunchest allies, hosting close to one million Ukrainian refugees, the second-highest number in the EU after Germany.
In addition to providing vital military assistance of its own, the country also serves as a critical logistical hub, handling the bulk of Western military aid to Ukraine.
According to Mateusz Broncel, founder of WarNewsPL, a Polish military-information platform specializing in security matters, this crucial role has made Poland a primary target for Moscow's disinformation campaigns aimed at altering public perception of Ukraine.
Broncel, who has tracked Russian intelligence activities on Polish social media for years, said one of the key narratives Moscow is pushing on online platforms is that Poland should stop helping Ukraine.
He pointed out that Russia’s operations are aggressive and far-reaching, targeting all the most popular platforms in Poland, including X (formerly known as Twitter), Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.
However, the platform most susceptible to Russian propaganda is TikTok, the youth-favorite, Chinese-owned video-sharing app.
Speaking to Vot Tak, a Russian-language news website under Belsat TV, a Belarusian channel of Poland's public broadcaster TVP, Broncel said: “I think many Poles in my age group—30 to 40 years old—underestimate the propaganda potential of TikTok.”
“Unfortunately, it’s enormous.”
“This platform primarily reaches young people, and we have to admit—it does so very effectively. You don’t have to look long to find Russian propaganda in Polish on TikTok—profiles boosted by bots pop up almost instantly.”
He added: “They’re full of information spread by Russian and even Belarusian state media.”
According to Broncel, Russian intelligence services primarily exploit TikTok to provoke emotional reactions and shape public attitudes.
He added that the Kremlin has made progress in this regard, as support for Ukraine among Poles has declined from what it was when Russia first launched its invasion in February 2022.
A poll conducted by CBOS, Poland’s national statistics office, in October found that support for accepting Ukrainian war refugees among Poles had dropped to 53%, a sharp decline from 94% in 2022.
Broncel said: “This is largely the result of Russian operations. I often feel ashamed of Poles when I see comments attacking Ukrainians on Twitter [X], Facebook, or TikTok—Ukrainians who are legally in our country, who work, pay taxes, and have assimilated.”
In addition to providing vital military assistance of its own, the country also serves as a critical logistical hub, handling the bulk of Western military aid to Ukraine.
According to Mateusz Broncel, founder of WarNewsPL, a Polish military-information platform specializing in security matters, this crucial role has made Poland a primary target for Moscow's disinformation campaigns aimed at altering public perception of Ukraine.
Broncel, who has tracked Russian intelligence activities on Polish social media for years, said one of the key narratives Moscow is pushing on online platforms is that Poland should stop helping Ukraine.
He pointed out that Russia’s operations are aggressive and far-reaching, targeting all the most popular platforms in Poland, including X (formerly known as Twitter), Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.
However, the platform most susceptible to Russian propaganda is TikTok, the youth-favorite, Chinese-owned video-sharing app.
Speaking to Vot Tak, a Russian-language news website under Belsat TV, a Belarusian channel of Poland's public broadcaster TVP, Broncel said: “I think many Poles in my age group—30 to 40 years old—underestimate the propaganda potential of TikTok.”
“Unfortunately, it’s enormous.”
“This platform primarily reaches young people, and we have to admit—it does so very effectively. You don’t have to look long to find Russian propaganda in Polish on TikTok—profiles boosted by bots pop up almost instantly.”
He added: “They’re full of information spread by Russian and even Belarusian state media.”
According to Broncel, Russian intelligence services primarily exploit TikTok to provoke emotional reactions and shape public attitudes.
He added that the Kremlin has made progress in this regard, as support for Ukraine among Poles has declined from what it was when Russia first launched its invasion in February 2022.
A poll conducted by CBOS, Poland’s national statistics office, in October found that support for accepting Ukrainian war refugees among Poles had dropped to 53%, a sharp decline from 94% in 2022.
Broncel said: “This is largely the result of Russian operations. I often feel ashamed of Poles when I see comments attacking Ukrainians on Twitter [X], Facebook, or TikTok—Ukrainians who are legally in our country, who work, pay taxes, and have assimilated.”
An ideal tool for hybrid war
Leading research institutes in the West have also warned that Moscow is particularly focused on TikTok for its disinformation efforts. The U.S.-based Brookings Institution has observed a growing Russian presence on the platform since the invasion began.
TikTok’s unique features, such as its algorithm-driven content distribution, emphasis on content over social connections, and meme culture, make it an ideal tool for hybrid warfare, experts say.
Russia’s use of TikTok to fuel disinformation has also been flagged in other European countries.
In a report to the European Commission last month, TikTok revealed it had removed more than 27,000 fake accounts as part of a network targeting Romanian users ahead of the country’s presidential elections last year. These accounts supported the far-right AUR party and pro-Moscow independent candidate Călin Georgescu.
Following intelligence reports of Russian interference, Romania annulled the results of the presidential election, which had seen Georgescu unexpectedly win the first round.
Georgescu has now been barred from standing in a re-run of the election, scheduled for May.
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