The Washington Post: Be careful, democrats, despots are trying to spread their methods

The Washington Post called on "democratic countries" to be wary of the methods of "tyrannical countries", which it said have been spreading their tyrannical methods to export dictatorships beyond their borders, describing this as a serious challenge to democracies.

And this American newspaper said in

that democracies and open societies are easy targets, and they should not be satisfied with these "malicious threats."

And she referred to a US State Department telegram to its embassies on September 12, in which it revealed offers of secret political funding from Russia around the world, as well as bags of money, mysterious sabotage and legions of trusted allies, adding that there is a much larger campaign by the regimes. authoritarian.

We can know them and expose them

The Washington Post said Moscow has transferred at least $300 million to foreign political parties and candidates in more than 20 countries since 2014 and plans to spend hundreds of millions more.

The editorial quoted an official in the administration of President Joe Biden as telling reporters that the United States wants to tell foreign parties and candidates that if they secretly accept Russian money, "we can find out and expose them."

The newspaper commented that it was just as useful as it was important to reveal how Russia was trying to interfere in the 2016 US presidential campaign.

The Washington Post went on to say that China, Russia, and other countries routinely export authoritarian methods of governance, and in recent years have developed "more interactive, multidimensional, and often subtle ways of demonstrating influence" as they train officials from developing countries in Internet censorship and control. On civil society and building a one-party system.

Billions of dollars, intimidation and bullying

She stated that a newly published study on China's influence in 30 countries from January 2019 to last December showed that Beijing spent billions on propaganda, but also used coercion, censorship and covert tactics to beautify its image, and flooded the media in other countries with content favorable to it. While you harass and intimidate outlets that publish news or opinions you don't like, and you bully, using fake online accounts, people you don't like.

And the Washington Post concluded its editorial by saying that the most troubling aspect is “cross-border repression” in which regimes that rule harshly believe they can reach the outside with the same threats, saying that the digital revolution has made it easier for tyrants to go after and intimidate activists, journalists and critics, no matter where they are, Noting that Freedom House recorded 735 incidents of cross-border physical repression from January 2014 to December 2021, with 85 incidents last year alone.