After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the European Union imposed sanctions on the Russian state-run propaganda media - RT and Sputnik - but the propagandists have been trying to find ways to bypass the restrictions, Bloomberg writes.

As noted, the EU imposed sanctions against RT on March 2, 2022, banning its content and suspending its broadcasts across the Union. The decision was based on the fact that Russia "has engaged in a systematic, international campaign of disinformation, information manipulation and distortion of facts in order to enhance its strategy of destabilization." But after the shutdown of RT offices in France and Germany, Russia has been looking for various ways to bypass sanctions, the publication notes.

The RT site is currently unavailable in the EU, but there are several mirror sites that circulate the same propaganda content. One of them, according to the WHOIS domain registration directory, was registered only three days after the announcement of sanctions by RT's licensee, ANO TV Novosti. According to research group Reset, RT uses a total of 19 such sites to spread propaganda across the EU.

The article notes that Sputnik also operates through mirror sites.

European Commissioner Vera Jourova, who is responsible for countering disinformation, says the Commission is aware of mirror sites and is working with member states to effectively apply sanctions.

RT content is distributed in many languages across different platforms so its removal requires constant vigilance. Although YouTube deletes the accounts of sanctioned media outlets, RT broadcasts are still regularly reposted, in what experts call a never-ending game of whack-a-mole game, the article noted.

According to Latvian diplomat Baiba Braze, who until June served as NATO's Assistant Secretary General for Public Diplomacy, Russia continues to use "regular massive disinformation operations in various countries to influence election outcomes and doubt election integrity."

“Russia’s war-fighting doctrine allocates significant attention to unconventional warfare,” Braze said. “Any Western country and political, business, cultural, NGO leader, journalist and influencer should be aware that Russia’s warfare doctrine involves interest in them.”