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Inside Russia’s Matryoshka Campaign, Designed to Sway Spanish Voters Ahead of Elections
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A covert Russian disinformation network known as Matryoshka has launched a sweeping influence campaign targeting the upcoming snap parliamentary elections in Spain, scheduled for November 29.
According to independent researchers and analysts at AntiBot4Navalny, the network is using fabricated videos and forged media assets to manipulate public opinion ahead of the vote.
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The operation relies on deceptive digital content designed to impersonate prominent international news organizations, including Euronews, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, France 24, and El País.
Additionally, the network has circulated counterfeit front pages of established French publications such as Libération, La Croix, and Le Nouvel Économiste.
🧵 Today’s Matryoshka bot campaign targets Spain's Nov 29 vote.
— bot blocker | блокировщик ботов (@antibot4navalny) November 11, 2026
💬 The housing crisis is the tip of the iceberg: the economy is doomed, elections won’t help.
💬 The real "solution": leave the EU, lift sanctions, split off Catalonia (sic!).
Here's how the logic unfolds ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/xQsAU1iu2o
The messaging advanced by these inauthentic materials centers heavily on Europe's economic challenges. The fake reports assert that continuous support for Ukraine and international sanctions against Moscow have caused a severe economic downturn across Europe.
In response to these alleged problems, the fabricated clips and articles urge Spanish citizens to demand the lifting of sanctions, an end to aid for Kyiv, and even the withdrawal of Spain from the European Union, AntiBot4Navalny reported.
A major focus of the campaign exploits domestic pressures, particularly the housing crisis in Spain. Fabricated video reports styled after El País attempt to connect rental and real estate difficulties directly to sanctions and support for Ukraine, while conflating unrelated events—such as a domestic railway accident and French student protests—with broader economic decay.
Other fabricated narratives introduce more radical geopolitical restructuring proposals. A video mimicking France 24 attributes statements to economist Jordi Galí calling for Catalan independence and the division of Germany into eastern and western states.
Another fabricated piece, styled as a Reuters report, features misattributed quotes regarding European political forces.
In February 2026, the Russian-aligned bot network Matryoshka launched a coordinated disinformation campaign targeting Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych following his disqualification from the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics.
Researchers from the Bot Blocker project revealed that the network disseminated fabricated videos and articles impersonating Western organizations like the Institute for the Study of War, Reuters, and Deutsche Welle to undermine international support for Ukraine.
The fabricated reports claimed that a military flashmob supporting Heraskevych exposed Ukrainian troop positions, alleged that the IOC was considering a total ban on the Ukrainian team for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, and spread stories about Under Armour banning Ukrainian athletes and Italian authorities dealing with intoxicated Ukrainian fans.
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