Matryoshka bot network poses as The Insider’s Christo Grozev to accuse Germany of planning to start a “revanchist” war

by admin

A group of Bundeswehr servicemen. Image: Michael Bihlmayer / Chromorange / picture alliance

The Kremlin's Matryoshka disinformation network has launched a new campaign. Using short videos disguised as content from well-known media outlets, bots are trying to convince X and Bluesky users that Germany is seeking to start a new war in Europe in order to take revenge for its defeat in World War II. This was reported to The Insider by the Bot Blocker project (@antibot4navalny).

Conspicuously, all the videos are voiced in English and contain blatant factual errors about Germany’s history and present-day life — mistakes that would be obvious to any local. One of the clips, supposedly produced by the German tabloid Bild, claims that The Insider's investigative journalist Christo Grozev began receiving threats after publishing an article about Germany’s alleged preparations for war. The video claims the article was based on documents showing that BMW — which manufactured aircraft engines for the Luftwaffe during World War II — had received over €5 billion from the German government to develop components for military aircraft engines. No such article ever existed, and BMW has not produced engines for military aircraft in decades. While the company does manufacture the BR700 aircraft engine family in partnership with Rolls-Royce, these engines are used in regional passenger planes and business jets, not in military aviation.

But that’s not the only anachronism. Another Matryoshka video, disguised as Deutsche Welle content, claims that Germany’s Defense Ministry has ordered around 800,000 military uniforms from Hugo Boss, a company that did indeed produce uniforms for the Nazi Party’s stormtroopers, the SS, the Hitler Youth, and the Wehrmacht — in the 1930s. After the defeat of Hitler’s forces, the formation of West Germany, and the establishment of the Bundeswehr, the German military’s procurement system changed substantially. Today, responsibility for uniform supply lies with Bw Bekleidungsmanagement GmbH, a Defense Ministry entity that purchases individual uniform components from various manufacturers through a tender process open to any enterprise that meets a set of technical requirements.

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Another video, disguised as content from Berliner Zeitung, claims that Germany is developing a new satellite system for imaging and navigation and plans to launch it as early as October 2025 — supposedly in preparation for war. The clip features a fake quote attributed to former German Defense Minister Thomas de Maizière: “No one would spend billions of euros on such complex equipment just to monitor forest fires. Obviously, we are preparing for war. And I am extremely frightened by the revanchist sentiments that prevail in the Ministry of Defense today.”

Other videos claim there has been a surge in violence by Germans against Polish, French, and Italian tourists, allegedly driven by a rise in nationalist sentiment. They also talk about supposed plans to conduct medical screenings for all men aged 15 to 50 and claim that massive sums are being spent on shooting drills and weapons training for soldiers.

In reality, German politicians and officials, including the country’s new Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, have repeatedly voiced the need for their country to carry out large-scale reforms while increasing the Bundeswehr’s personnel level and restocking its arsenals. However, these plans are not driven by revanchism, but by a desire to strengthen Germany’s national defense capabilities amid Russia’s war against Ukraine and the unpredictability of U.S. policy. “We want to be able to defend ourselves so that we don't have to defend ourselves,” Merz said at a press conference.

The Insider has access to original X posts as well as evidence provided by the Bot Blocker Project linking the accounts that posted them to the Matryoshka bot network. To avoid further spreading the disinformation, The Insider does not provide direct links to the misleading content.

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