West widely used fake news to change political regime in Armenia in  2018 - Sergei Shoigu

ArmInfo. The West widely uses fake news to change political regimes in so-called target countries and creates communication mechanisms to control people. This method  was also used in Armenia in 2018. This was stated by Sergei Shoigu,  Secretary of the Russian Security Council (SC).

"Effective communication mechanisms are being created to mobilize and  control the masses, as well as to manipulate public opinion," Shoigu  wrote in a column for Izvestia, describing the West's methods for  organizing "color revolutions." According to the Secretary of the  Security Council of the Russian Federation, "the dissemination of  fake news through media and social media controlled by external  curators is widely used to discredit the government (primarily  through accusations of corruption) and to foster a false sense of  injustice and anxiety among the population."

"This practice was widely used during the protests in Armenia in 2018  aimed at overthrowing President Serzh Sargsyan, during attempts to  discredit the leadership of Serbia and the Republika Srpska of Bosnia  and Herzegovina, as well as following the results of the  parliamentary elections in Georgia in 2024 and during the election  campaign in Hungary from February to April 2026," Shoigu noted.

He added that the implementation of the plans of the organizers of  "color revolutions" is facilitated by the difficulties and mistakes  of the leadership of the target countries. Shoigu also emphasized the  importance of taking into account that, despite the significant  internal challenges to the stability of target countries, external  forces are the key organizers of "color revolutions." According to  him, Western non-governmental organizations (NGOs)-foundations, think  tanks, volunteer movements, religious communities, and sects- play a  special role among the tools they use. Foreign curators task NGOs  with monitoring and destabilizing the domestic political situation,  developing strategies to pressure the government, creating so-called  information noise, recruiting and training protesters, interacting  with the opposition and pro-Western civil society organizations,  raising and distributing funds, and coordinating protest actions.

"With the active role of NGOs, each 'color revolution' develops its  own visual propaganda and symbol systems that are attractive to the  public, including universal signs, gestures, and colors (the 'Velvet  Revolution' in Armenia, the 'Bloody Hand' sign, and the chant  'Pumpay!' during the protests in Serbia)," Shoigu continued.

He added that the beginning of a "color revolution" is marked by  coordinated mass protests in major cities and increased external  pressure on government leaders, demanding concessions to the  opposition and their resignation. "Informational pressure on the  government is becoming more radical, aimed at dehumanizing and  demonizing it to morally justify violence against members of the  ruling regime.

Direct calls for its change are spreading. Those who orchestrate it  are choosing high-profile events, often tragic ones, as triggers for  escalating anti-government protests," he concluded.