As Russia pulls back its forces and equipment from Syria following what was undoubtedly a strategic defeat, let’s revisit Moscow’s narratives on its Syria intervention.
The intervention, which began in 2015, was framed by the Kremlin as a necessary action to combat terrorism, stabilise the region, and protect Syrian sovereignty, while smearing humanitarian groups and Western actions.
Framing the intervention as fighting terrorism
Russia justified its intervention as part of the global battle against terrorism, particularly against ISIS and Al Qaeda-affiliated groups. The Kremlin presented its actions as morally and strategically justified, emphasising that its military presence in Syria was not aimed at keeping Assad in power but at combating terrorism.
In reality, Russia’s military actions were mostly focussed on targeting the non-ISIS opposition forces, and only a low proportion of Russian airstrikes in Syria targeted ISIS or other al-Qaeda-linked groups.
Russia’s main goal was to save Assad and his regime. There is ample evidence that the Syrian leadership (supported by Russia) has been responsible for numerous massacres, bombings and chemical attacks on civilians in Syria. Russian airstrikes on hospitals, water treatment plants and mosques (causing hundreds of civilian deaths) have also been documented.
Disinformation on chemical attacks
Russia tried to discredit claims that the Syrian government, with Russian support, used chemical weapons. State-backed disinformation narratives suggested such attacks were fabricated by the West to justify their interventions. A key example was the 2018 chemical attack in Douma, which Russian media described as a “false flag” operation by Western countries and the White Helmets to tarnish the Syrian government. This manipulative piece of disinformation aimed to portray chemical attacks as part of a broader Western plot against Syria’s sovereignty. In fact, the constant use of chemical substances as a weapon by the Syrian regime of Bashar Al Assad, including the Douma attack, have been proven by UN investigators.
Smearing the White Helmets and Western interventions
Russian disinformation often targeted humanitarian groups like the White Helmets, falsely accusing them of staging rescue operations and chemical attacks for propaganda purposes, and engaging in organ trafficking. In efforts to undermine independent reporting on atrocities committed by the Syrian regime, Russian state-controlled media try to smear the group using false disinformation and portrayed the group as aligned with terrorist organisations and Western interests.
A majority of Russia’s claims have lacked evidence and relied on meaningless formulations such as “according to information provided by X,” “there are reasons to assume,” and so forth. The news item accusing the White Helmets of organ trafficking was based on an unverified report presented by Maksim Grigoryev, a member of Russia’s Civil Chamber, and bases its claims on a “fact-checking” methodology consisting solely of purported witness testimony and unverifiable hearsay.
The narrative of the moral high ground
Russia’s portrayal of its intervention was also part of a broader strategy to present itself as the defender of international law and sovereignty. It contrasted Russia’s actions with what it labelled as Western hypocrisy, accusing Western nations of destabilising the region by supporting Syrian opposition groups linked to terrorism. Russian narratives criticised Western interventions, accusing them of violating international law, while framing Russia’s actions as legitimate and in defence of Syria’s sovereignty.
However, there is no evidence that the West has supported ISIS or other terrorist groups in Syria. In fact, Western countries have been engaged in enormous military and intelligence efforts to counter Al Qaeda, as well as ISIS and other radical Islamist groups around the world.
The civil war in Syria has been ongoing since 2011, stemming from popular discontent with Bashar al-Assad’s undemocratic rule, which triggered large-scale protests and pro-democracy rallies across Syria. Presidential elections in Syria have been far from democratic, and there is ample evidence that the Syrian regime is responsible for numerous war crimes and international law. Russian airstrikes on hospitals, water treatment plants and mosques [causing hundreds of civilian deaths] have also been documented.
For over a decade, Russia has been spreading disinformation and manipulative claims with the aim to make people question what “the truth” really was, fostering the belief that “we will never know what actually happened.” This strategy has distracted people and made opponents more passive and pessimistic.
Article and pictures first time published on the EUvsDisinfo web page. Prepared for publication by volunteers from the Res Publica - The Center for Civil Resistance.
