00:04Welcome to the Cube Euronews' fact-checking show.
00:07Take a look at these videos, which look just like genuine reports from some of Germany's biggest news organisations.
00:14For example, this fake Spiegel video claims that more than 82% of young Germans would like to see East
00:21Germany restored.
00:22And this false CDF video says that property owners in Western Germany would rather rent to foreigners than to Eastern
00:30Germans.
00:31Other videos mimic the logos of Build, T-Online and even the military think tank, the Institute for the Study
00:37of War.
00:38These kinds of videos have spread across ex-Blue Sky and Chinese-owned TikTok since June, with at least 100
00:44posts across platforms.
00:46But none of these videos or headlines are real.
00:48Instead, these videos insert respected branding onto a video to push a false claim.
00:54Researchers say these posts are part of a coordinated influence campaign tied to Russia, ahead of Germany's elections in September.
01:02It's an important year for the country with two elections in Eastern states, Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
01:10Both are being closely watched, with polls suggesting the far-right AFD can make gains.
01:14Despite featuring different stories, they all promote the narrative that Germany is becoming more divided between East and West.
01:22We spoke to experts who said that this campaign, like other Moscow-linked efforts, seeks to exploit existing social tensions.
01:29Despite Germany being reunified for decades, East-West tensions remain a political fault line that foreign influence efforts can exploit.
01:37So far, however, there is little evidence that shows that Moscow-linked propaganda can sway public opinion.
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