Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has ripped façade off anti-imperialism

Frida Ghitis is a world affairs columnist who writes for outlets such as CNN, the Washington Post and World Politics Review.

It was a stunning moment, but it should have been unremarkable: Gabriel Boric, the leftist president of Chile, calling Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a “war of imperial aggression,” pleading with his Latin American and Caribbean counterparts to recognize the fact.

In the end, Boric failed.

The final communique of the summit between the European Union and CELAC, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, didn’t condemn Russia. Instead, it blandly expressed “concern” regarding the war, in keeping with a curious phenomenon plaguing the so-called Global South.

What has happened to their vaunted disdain for imperialism, the one they proclaimed on city walls and fulminated against in the streets?

Despite decades of decrying the evils of imperialism and colonialism, the leaders of Latin America and Africa, now confronted with Russia’s brazen effort to grab Ukraine — a move of naked modern-day imperialism — suddenly seem confounded by what they see and ambivalent about how to respond. And the passionate pleas by Boric, the bearded 37-year-old president, are proving to be the exception.

Just consider the contrast with another leftist leader, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, a veteran populist who reserved his harshest words regarding the invasion for Ukraine’s supporters, calling NATO’s policy “immoral.”

Many African leaders, too, have opted to keep a neutral stance, or even help Russia in the conflict.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, it seems, has ripped the façade off anti-imperialism in some developing countries, revealing the underlying hypocrisy that tried to dress anti-Americanism and anti-Westernism in an elegant, high-minded and seemingly coherent ideology.

To be sure, colonialism and imperialism exacted a terrible toll on both continents, and some of those wounds are still suppurating. But if imperialism is wrong, why not condemn it when Russia is the perpetrator? 

There is, of course, a pragmatic angle to this. Many countries simply view the war as someone else’s problem, preferring not to take sides. But considering that Russia’s assault on Ukraine and its refusal to allow grain across the Black Sea is causing food prices to soar, adding to the plight of impoverished people around the world, this is, in fact, everyone’s war.

And even if they didn’t care about Russia’s multiple grave violations of international law, developing countries cannot pretend it doesn’t concern them.

Many forces are at play here. For one, among ruling elites — particularly leftist ones, and especially among older leaders — Cold War nostalgia can trigger reflexive support for Moscow against any position adopted by Washington. Notice the generational chasm of over 30 years separating Obrador and Boric.

It doesn’t matter that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Russia has become the subject of gushing admiration by the far right. To some, the name Moscow still elicits echoes of the USSR and the old struggle against capitalism and inequality.

Add to that the Kremlin’s determined effort to influence public opinion in both Africa and Latin America. Ambivalence about the guilt of a country committing war crimes and massacring civilians is exactly what happens when disinformation and political interference meet hypocrisy. And Putin tried to take that sentiment, mix it with lies and distortions, and feed it into his social media machinery, aiming to create a blast furnace of anti-Americanism, the heat off which would burn not just the United States but also the EU, NATO and liberal democracy.

For years, the Kremlin has been working to flood Africa with disinformation, while also sending forces both covert and overt, to shape its politics. Russian propaganda outlets, troll farms, the paramilitary Wagner Group, military trainers — all have combined in an effort to ply Africa to Moscow’s designs.

This disinformation has been well documented. The Russian embassy in South Africa, for example, posted a screenshot of an article blaming NATO for the war in Ukraine, which appeared as if it had been published in POLITICO. The screenshot was fake. Russia also finances multiple “local” news outlets across the continent, which are dedicated to spreading its propaganda.

Meanwhile, in Latin America, Russian propaganda runs thick in the media streams. Russia Today (RT) and Sputnik — both Kremlin controlled outlets — have Spanish-language operations with millions of followers on broadcast and social media. The vast RT en Espanol has over 200 employees in Moscow, and its cable service now reaches almost every country in Latin America, feeding audiences anti-American propaganda and Russia’s version of global events — including its skewed depiction of the war in Ukraine.

And yet, the Kremlin’s efforts to influence public opinion in Africa and Latin America, much like its effort to gain control of Ukraine, aren’t altogether a triumph.

Sure, national leaders have so far been reluctant to throw their support behind Ukraine, but there are visible cracks along Moscow’s road to building a pro-Russian Global South.

For example, when Putin invited African leaders to St. Petersburg for a Russia-Africa summit last month, only 17 heads of state showed up — a stunning drop from last time, when 43 African leaders attended. And much of the talk at the summit was about how African countries would receive wheat, given Russia’s failure to renew the Black Sea deal.

An IPSOS poll ahead of the summit also showed that majorities across Africa believe Russia is guilty of committing war crimes, is actively violating international law and should withdraw from Ukraine, with many participants telling pollsters that, having lived through colonialism, their countries shouldn’t support other nations’ attempts to annex others. 

Similarly, in Latin America, despite the “Pavlovian anti-Americanism” seen in some sectors, the population is turning more pro-U.S., even holding positive views toward President Joe Biden, who has led the campaign to condemn Russia’s invasion and rally support for Ukraine.

A recently released Pew poll found Biden receiving mostly positive marks around the world, including in Latin America, and views of the U.S. moving in tandem. In Mexico and Brazil, favorable views of the U.S. even topped 60 percent.

In polled African countries, too, the majority had positive views of America. And, in a fascinating nugget that should trouble the Kremlin, in most countries, many participants also said the U.S. “contributes to peace and stability” around the world.

Overall, reaction to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has revealed that, among many who continuously railed against imperialism, the term was little more than a cover for their own anti-Americanism. But while Putin’s disinformation campaigns have magnified this phenomenon, Russia’s also losing ground — particularly in democratic countries.

And despite ambiguous responses to the invasion, despite the Kremlin’s determined propaganda, most of the world knows the truth about Russia’s imperialist war.