Russia has reportedly taken an interest in meddling in the Catalonian independence referendum in Spain, the Spanish newspaper El Pais reports, writing that "the Kremlin is using the Catalan crisis as a way to deepen divisions within Europe and consolidate its international influence." Courts in Spain ruled earlier this month that the referendum would violate the national constitution, although the autonomous Catalan region is set to vote on its independence on Oct. 1.
El Pais alleges that in the past several weeks, Russia has deployed the same tools that it used to influence America's 2016 presidential election, including fake news articles that are spread through social media by bots:
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