Litvinenko's widow: West must counter Putin's 'brainwashing' | DW News |

The West must step up its battle against the Kremlin's disinformation campaign, Marina Litvinenko, the widow of the poisoned Russian spy and Putin critic Alexander Litvinenko, told DW.

She said the Russian people have been "completely brainwashed" over the past 20 years and most independent media outlets have been shut down.

Litvinenko said Western countries -- including Germany -- who used to beam Russian language broadcasts into the Soviet Union, were partly responsible for allowing Russian President Vladimir Putin to spread disinformation when they cut their services after the end of the Cold War.

"It was a huge mistake because the people behind this war have been waiting for revenge. When this all proper [truthful] information left Russia, it was ... [replaced] by disinformation, by brainwashing," she added.

Key words | RussiaGate | DNC diction | Khodorovsky | Browder | MI6 - Chris Steel | US Congress Magnitsky Act | Henry Jackson Society | Regime change Kremlin | Assassinate Putin | Gov in Exile in London |

'Sapere aude'