Montenegro Arrests Head of Russian Propaganda Project Rybar

In Montenegro, police and Agency for National Security officers have detained Mikhail Zvinchuk, head of the Russian propaganda project Rybar.

Vijesti reports this, citing its own sources in the country’s law enforcement agencies.

The operation targeting the Russian network’s hybrid activities was carried out in the city of Risan.

Along with Zvinchuk, law enforcement officers detained his wife and associate, Valeriia Zvinchuk, as well as three other individuals.

The British government says that Rybar’s activities are partly coordinated by the Russian presidential administration, and that the project receives funding from state-owned corporation Rostec and cooperates with Russian intelligence services.

In October 2024, the United States announced a reward of up to $10 million for information on the Russian project.

According to U.S. authorities, the network attempted to interfere in the U.S. presidential election.

In particular, Rybar operates the propaganda media channels HOLDTHELINE and STANDWITHTEXAS to promote the Russian government’s political interests in the United States.

Both projects are used by supporters of the pro-Republican voting in the United States, and the former has appeared on accounts with an audience of more than one million people.

According to U.S. authorities, Rybar also created the TEXASvsUSA account on X to exploit the issue of illegal immigration across the Texas border.

In addition, in February, OpenAI announced that it had blocked ChatGPT accounts linked to the network.

The operation, known as Fish Food, used artificial intelligence to create and spread propaganda content. The network operated not only through Rybar’s official channels but also through an extensive system of anonymous accounts on X and Telegram.