In contrast, the Russian Federation has been referred to as an “imitation democracy”. It has institutions that one would find in democratic systems of government (a parliament and a directly elected president). But, among other flaws, these institutions do not function within a genuinely competitive or fair electoral environment.

On Jan. 22, posts on the social media platform X alleged that Russian President Vladimir Putin wanted to extradite Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief medical adviser to the U.S. president from 2021 to 2022, to Russia as part of a deal to stop the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The posts provided no evidence to support the claim.