While the free world continues to sound the alarm about Russia’s influence in Europe, little attention has been paid to the damage Moscow is causing in America’s hemisphere. Russian state media mixes fact with fiction to create confusion, trigger emotions and diminish trust in democratic institutions.

The Kremlin’s false narratives, which appear in Russian state-sponsored press reports, social media platforms and the personal pages of Kremlin officials, influence Hispanic Americans and Latin Americans to distrust the United States and support candidates and policies that favor Moscow.

Russian disinformation attempts to exploit Latin Americans’ historical memory of foreign interference and neocolonial exploitation. Latin Americans fear military juntas, and Russian disinformation plays on this as well.

The plans of President Trump to introduce tariffs have produced concern in Latin America, and this area, too, is a target for Russian disinformation. In an attempt to create solidarity with Latin Americans, Russia has depicted U.S. tariffs as a tool to damage regional economies and “intensify … covert operations.”

While vilifying the U.S., Russia seeks to depict itself as a defender of Christianity.

On Oct. 7, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and Bolivian President Luis Alberto Arce Catacora all took to social media to congratulate Russian President Vladimir Putin on his birthday and describe him as a “friend” who achieved “victory” for “social justice.”

Russia rewards the loyalty of its Latin American allies by legitimizing their authoritarian measures.