OUR Russian invasion V Ukraine gave a new weapon to the quiver of the populists of the Eastern European countries: the fear of war.

More than a year after the start of the Russian invasion, there is no end in sight to this war. And some politicians do not hesitate to use the anxiety caused by the war, saying that support for Ukraine could drag their country into the war.

From Prague to Sofia, false claims that governments will call for military service or simply “send our sons to the meat grinder” have dominated political discourse.

“Fear is the primary emotion, and the politics of fear is the oldest tactic,” says Jiri Priban, professor of law at Cardiff University. “That (fear) is part of all political campaigns.”

The danger in Slovakia, a country bordering Ukraine, is causing more and more men to refuse military service.

Before Russian invasion Slovakia, member state NATO, recorded about 1,500 conscientious objectors per year. The number rose to more than 40,000 last year, according to the Defense Department.

This wind of panic among young Slovaks was fueled by former Prime Minister Robert Fico, who campaigned against NATO, the US and “Ukrainian fascists”.

For Fico, the war between Moscow and Kyiv is not about the Slovaks, because it is “a war between the US and Russia.”

“Fertile Soil”

Echoing pro-Russian propaganda, Fico accused the current government of Slovakia of being a lackey of the United States.

The scare tactic appears to be paying off: Fico’s Smer party ranks first or second in most opinion polls ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for September.

“Slovakia is extremely vulnerable to disinformation, and the Russians have found extremely fertile ground here for their propaganda,” said Michal Vasecka, a research fellow at the Aspen Institute and a sociologist at the International School of Liberal Arts in Bratislava.

“When you keep telling people that their government is an agent of the United States, they start to wonder, ‘Why should our boys protect American interests?’

War panic also dominated the recent presidential elections in the neighboring Czech Republic.

Elected at the end of January, the new head of state, Petr Pavel, a former general, continues to be the target of a disinformation campaign that portrays him as belligerent.

Among the false statements attributed to him are a call to send Czech soldiers to fight in Ukraine or a desire to declare war on Russia.

Pavel’s electoral opponent, billionaire and former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, wrote on his campaign posters that his opponent did not believe in peace, saying: “I will not drag the Czech Republic into war.”

“Invincible Superpower”

“There is a growing effort to intimidate people into believing they will be forced to fight a war they cannot win,” Czech Elves, a volunteer organization that tracks and analyzes disinformation, said in its latest monthly report.

“Russia is positioning itself as an invincible nuclear superpower with a successful military campaign in Ukraine,” the latest report says.

In Bulgaria, the pro-Russian ultra-nationalist Vozrozhdeniye Party has organized anti-government demonstrations and is urging its constituents not to become cannon fodder.

Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orbanwho criticizes European arms supplies to Ukraine, has always tried not to criticize Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Paradoxically, the political exploitation of fear of war has not had much success with voters in Poland and the Baltic states, where the threat of Russian military aggression seems more real.

The common negative historical experience with Russia immunized the citizens of these countries from pro-Russian propaganda, Iri Priban believes.

“There is a real existential fear in the Baltic countries, but this strengthens their support for Ukraine,” he adds.

Source: APE-MPE-AFP.