The Russian propaganda outlet Pravda has intensified its disinformation campaign in the Balkans by publishing content in Albanian, specifically targeting Kosovo’s statehood and drawing false parallels between Kosovo and Crimea. These findings are detailed in a new report titled “The Challenges of Information Disorder in Kosovo.”
According to the report, Pravda's Albanian-language domain has been active since March 2024. By April 2025, it had published approximately 3,000 articles aimed at Albanian-speaking audiences — content experts say is frequently inflammatory and anti-Western.
Speaking to A2CNN, media analyst Driton Fetoshi highlighted two key objectives behind this Kremlin-driven and Serbia-executed campaign:
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Undermining the legitimacy of Kosovo’s independence.
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Promoting pro-Russian and pro-Serbian narratives across Albanian-speaking regions.
Festim Rizanaj, a researcher at Hibrid.info, told A2CNN that Pravda is part of a broader, coordinated online operation orchestrated by the Kremlin. He explained that while the platform consistently attacks NATO and Western institutions, its impact in the region remains limited.
Nonetheless, the report stresses that Kosovo and the wider Balkans remain a primary focus of Pravda's narrative war. The purpose of the 3,000-article campaign is clear: to normalize a Belgrade-Moscow alliance and to glorify figures like Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik.
Experts warn that such malign influence campaigns represent a growing threat to regional stability and democratic discourse, especially as they exploit local languages and sentiments to amplify foreign propaganda.