Austria FM fears EU loss of information war against Russia

The European Union has full control of the information space on its territories, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg said Monday, admitting that the 27-nation bloc was "losing" to Russia in the information war in other parts of the world.

"I, myself, have been to the Middle East, India and Pakistan. There is a completely different narrative, partly Russian, according to which the supply of grain and oilseeds cannot be carried out due to the EU sanctions, and because we ourselves contribute to a rapid increase in energy prices," the minister claimed while talking to reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg.

According to Schallenberg, Europe should be aware of the need to "conduct educational work" in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia, and provide support to these regions. 

The West and its allies, spearheaded by the United States, have launched a comprehensive sanctions campaign against Russia in light of the Ukraine war, banning the import of Russian energy resources, cutting Russian banks from SWIFT, and banning Russian channels from airing all over Europe.

The European Union in early June announced that it was suspending the broadcasting activities of various other state-owned media outlets, namely Rossiya RTR/RTR Planeta, Rossiya 24, and TV Centre International. These are not the first broadcasters to have their operations suspended throughout the EU, as the bloc previously sanctioned Russia Today and Sputnik.

Senegalese President and African Union Chairman Macky Sall said Western sanctions imposed on Russian banks and their disconnection from the SWIFT system of global payments impeded and completely cut off African countries' bids to acquire food and fertilizers, further jeopardizing their food security and putting them on the edge of famine.