This story didn‘t make the Irish news outlets yesterday or today, but Bloomberg carried out an in depth investigation into the Russian disinformation network Storm-1516. What made it interesting is that an Irishman, Chay Bowes, was named multiple times in the report, and was even contacted by the journalists for comment.
Bowes works for Russia Today and in 2025 he was deported from Romania in advance of their election. Bloomberg link him with multiple posts on X that come directly from Storm-1516 - GRU linked disinformation network that pushes anti-Ukraine, anti-EU and pro-Russian narratives.
They mention that Bowes was a cofounder of The Ditch, resides in Moscow, but spends a considerable amount of time in Ireland. He was also the guy who leaked the story about Leo Varadkar sharing an agreement with a consultant union. It was also confirmed in a Sunday Independent interview with the Russian ambassador that Chay Bowes visited the embassy on multiple occasions prior to moving to Moscow to work on Russia Today.
I found this very interesting and potentially evidence of disinformation campaigns operating in Ireland using social media as a conduit.