Thursday Briefing: Russia’s online attack on Ukraine aid

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March 28, 2024

By Justin Porter

Good morning. We’re covering a Russian effort to derail Ukraine aid and the latest on the Baltimore bridge collapse.

Plus, Stephen King’s best books.

The techniques are subtle and far more skillful than what Russia attempted in 2016. Mauricio Lima for The New York Times

Russia’s stealthy online effort to derail Ukraine aid

Russia has intensified its spread of online disinformation in an effort to derail military funding in the U.S. and Europe for Ukraine, according to experts and intelligence assessments. The campaign largely uses harder-to-trace technologies to amplify arguments for isolationism ahead of the U.S. elections.

The stepped-up operations, run by aides to President Vladimir Putin and Russian military intelligence agencies, come at a critical moment in the debate in the U.S. over support for Ukraine. Russian operatives are laying the groundwork for what could be a stronger push to support candidates who oppose aiding Ukraine, or who call for pulling the U.S. away from NATO and other alliances, U.S. officials and independent researchers say.

Investigators say that firms working in the loosely linked “Doppelgänger” network create fake versions of real news websites in the U.S., Israel, Germany and Japan, among other countries. U.S. officials note that their techniques make identifying — and calling out — Russian operations particularly difficult.

U.S. intelligence agencies do not believe that the Kremlin has begun its full-bore influence effort. Putin will probably shift at some point from the anti-Ukraine messaging to influence operations that more directly support the candidacy of Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee.

An emergency center that was destroyed by an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon. Mohammad Zaatari/Associated Press

Israel and Hezbollah trade cross-border shots

Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets from Lebanon into northern Israel yesterday, killing at least one person. The Lebanese militia and political organization said that the rockets were in retaliation for an Israeli strike that killed seven medics in southern Lebanon.

For months, Hezbollah and Israel have traded fire across the Israel-Lebanon border, displacing tens of thousands of people from their homes. The recent attacks come two days after the U.N. Security Council voted for a cease-fire in Gaza. Israel’s air force has kept up a barrage of strikes, and Hamas fighters have continued to attack Israeli soldiers, an indication that the U.N. resolution had failed to persuade either side.

Surveillance in Gaza: Israel is using a previously undisclosed facial recognition program to collect and catalog the faces of Palestinians without their knowledge or consent, according to Israeli officials.

“Rebuilding will not be quick or easy or cheap,” Pete Buttigieg told reporters, “but we will get it done.” Erin Schaff/The New York Times

The White House vowed to reopen Baltimore’s port

The Biden administration pledged an aggressive effort yesterday to reopen the Port of Baltimore after the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed. But the U.S. transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg, warned of a “long and difficult path” to full recovery, including the rebuilding of the bridge.

On the ground, investigators were examining data from an on-ship recorder to help determine what caused the disaster, while officials scrambled to limit the economic impact of the disaster, which caused a major disruption to shipping and global supply chains that would most likely ripple for weeks.

The missing workers: Rescuers were still trying to recover the bodies of six construction workers. They are immigrants from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico, according to the consular authorities and a nonprofit.

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An L.G.B.T.Q. parade in Bangkok in 2018. Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters

“I always strive for creative freedom,” Wang Xiaoshuai said. “But it’s become impossible because of the circumstances.” Olivia Lifungula for The New York Times

Wang Xiaoshuai is among the few Chinese artists who refuse to bend to state limitations. Like many of his contemporaries, he remembers the Communist Party’s harsh grip on creative expression. Recently, he saw that history begin to repeat itself: Beijing ordered him to withdraw his latest film from the Berlin International Film Festival or face the consequences.

Lives lived: Richard Serra was a sculptor who created steel structures so vast they had to be walked through to be fully experienced. He died at 85.

CONVERSATION STARTERS

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Elizabeth Renstrom for The New York Times

The essential Stephen King

Stephen King’s first novel, “Carrie,” is turning 50 this year. To mark the anniversary, we spoke to George R.R. Martin, Sissy Spacek, Tom Hanks, the archbishop of Canterbury and others about the powerful impact King’s work has had on their lives.

If you’re new to King, my colleagues at the Book Review have put together a list of his essential works. One of my personal favorites is “On Writing,” which is something of a memoir as well as an instruction manual. For the scaredy-cats among us, there are even a few books on the list that won’t have you checking under the bed before you go to sleep.

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Bobbi Lin for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.

Cook: These lightly spiced hot cross buns are a delicious symbol of the Easter season.

Watch: Our critic recommends these six terrific comedy specials.

Listen: Joni Mitchell’s songs are coming back to Spotify. Here’s a list of our favorites.

Garden: Apparently there is no such thing as having too many Japanese maples.

Entertain: How to host a lunch like a Parisian gallerist.

Play Spelling Bee, the Mini Crossword, Wordle and Sudoku. Find all our games here.

That’s it for today. See you tomorrow. — Justin

P.S. Our international staff won four Overseas Press Club Awards for their continued coverage of the Israel-Hamas and Russia-Ukraine wars.

We welcome your feedback. Send us your suggestions at briefing@nytimes.com.

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