Sophie Normand-Couturier presents the last live broadcast of the RT France channel following a decision by the European Union following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on March 2, 2022. LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP
FRANCE 2 – THURSDAY 27 OCTOBER AT 11 PM – DOCUMENTARY
This February 11, Frédéric Petit, MEP of the Group of Democrats (MoDem and Independents) of the 7th constituency of French residents outside France (Germany, Central Europe and Balkans), cannot foresee that he will be trapped entering the Luxembourg Palace. While he is being persuaded to attend a parliamentary session on the situation in Ukraine, his speech will be broadcast live on a pro-Russian Ukrainian TV channel and will be accompanied by statements from people close to Vladimir Putin, such as Ukrainian oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk or deputy Leonid Slutsky.
The latter is “banned from staying in Europe”, specifies Laure Pollez, one of the three journalists who investigated France: the Putin networks broadcast on Thursday evening, October 27, but the only one that refers to the screen staged. The documentary, as we could see it, does not state that Viktor Medvedchuk was detained by Ukrainian forces on April 12, detained and exchanged on September 22. On the other hand, he sets about finding out how such a deception could have been staged.
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After this enticing introduction, Vladimir Putin’s seductive policies towards French (right-wing) leaders materialize in a better-known sequence devoted to the ties that have linked the Russian president to François Fillon since the birth of their friendship in Sochi in 2008, when the two were prime ministers. The connections that the Kremlin has with members of the RN (Marine Le Pen, Thierry Mariani, Philippe Olivier) are illustrated by exclusive documents made available by The dossier centerThe organ of Vladimir Putin’s opponent Mikhail Khodorkovsky and diplomatic testimonies.
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The last part, dedicated to the manipulation of information, follows like a fiction. It begins with a report on RT France, the Russian channel that has been banned since March 2 (the documentary explains why), in which only presenter Samantha Ramsamy speaks frankly.
Stand up to the Westerners
Laure Pollez’s investigation then takes her to Africa (where RT is broadcast) to explain the false case of the Gossi “mass grave” in Mali – two days after the official withdrawal of the “Barkhane” force from that base, is a Tweet posted April 21: “This is what the French left behind,” with a photo of buried bodies. “Wagner’s militiamen orchestrated this production,” assures France; Russia denies.
The investigation also offers a unique opportunity to enter the premises of Viginum, the new French cell created to fight against foreign interference. She reveals how MediaPatriot, the press group of Evgueni Prigojine (head of the Wagner mercenary group), tried to discredit Emmanuel Macron ahead of the 2022 presidential election.
But who writes these fake articles? How are they published? A turnkey article is paid 300 euros to be published in Cotonou (Benin). Russia sends aid and opposes Westerners, explains an African journalist, “and it pleases”. Disinformation has a bright future ahead of it. Despite its ban, RT France is again broadcasting its programs live and in French via the clandestine platform Odysee.
France: the Putin networks, by Laure Pollez, Alexandra Jousset and Olivier Broutin (Fri., 2022, 58 min). “Additional investigation”, France 2.