Tommy Robinson co-ordinated UK protests to the Belfast attack after spending time in a luxury hotel in Russia with Elon Musk’s father.
The far-right leader, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, posted a list of 70 protest sites on Tuesday and shared inflammatory videos and messages including calling migrants “invaders” and “savages”.
“It’s time”, he told his two million followers.
The day before, he posted on X a short video of himself with Errol Musk, with Robinson quipping that the pair would “cause some trouble”. Musk responded: “No trouble, we are doing things right.”
The i Paper has verified this video and geolocated it to the Shalyapin Grand Lobby and Bar inside the Metropol Hotel, a five-star hotel in Moscow.
A piano and red velvet curtains can be seen behind Robinson, right, while a distinctive stained glass artwork and pannelling can be seen in the frame with Errol Musk (Photo: Tommy Robinson/X) The same velvet curtains and piano can be seen towards the back and left of a photo of the hotel bar uploaded to Google Maps, while the artwork and pannelling is visible in another upload (Photo: Google Maps/Natalia Konnova)Robinson did not respond to a request for comment. He told the Guardian he was in Moscow “to see how this country got itself so well on to the straight and narrow and see the beauty of a civilised society here”.
“Russia is not the enemy of Britain,” he said, adding: “There are those who benefit from pushing Russia as an enemy but everyone laughs at those people now.”
It is unclear if Robinson was still in Russia when he encouraged the demonstrations.
Protests, in the wake of a knife attack in Belfast that resulted in a Sudanese national charged with attempted murder, turned violent on Tuesday night.
Robinson tweeted on Wednesday: “Whilst I absolutely DO NOT advocate for violence or for setting a town ablaze, I can understand the anger that drives it.”
‘Useful idiot’
Dan Lomas, an intelligence expert at the University of Nottingham, said Robinson’s presence in Russia fits the country’s disruption playbook to exploit “existing grievances within Western society” by amplifying voices that cause division and sow chaos.
“Russian information operations is effectively picking at a scab and not letting that wound heal, and it’s a long-term strategy that continues to see particular narratives being put across social media,” he told The i Paper.
Robinson – who previously visited Russia in 2020 – appears to be taking on the role of a “useful idiot” for Russian President Vladimir Putin, Lomas said, referring to individuals who were ideologically motivated, invited to Russia, treated to expensive meals and drinks, before being sent home.
“They would come back to Britain and say, ‘Oh my god, you know, Russia is great’… I think this is a similar strategy”, he said.
Right-wing figures flock to Russia
Robinson and Errol Musk appeared to be part of a confluence of Western right-wing figures in Russia, some of whom attended the Kremlin-backed St Petersburg International Economic Forum between 3 and 6 June.
Musk was among the speakers at Russia’s equivalent to Davos, where he said the “fake media” in the West pushes “complete nonsense” about Russia and praised Putin as a “very stable and pleasant man”.
Andrew Tate, the British influencer and self-described misogynist, and his brother Tristan also posted from Russia this week, alongside high-profile US figures such as Candace Owens and Alex Jones.
GM pic.twitter.com/XRls882Yz3
— Andrew Tate (@Cobratate) June 2, 2026“Russia is cultivating certain individuals,” Lomas said, noting that it’s “no coincidence” to see the Tate brothers there too. “You’re seeing these individuals who are anti-liberal Western voices being amplified [by Russia].”
Moscow has spent years building up what Lomas described as “propaganda farms”, which includes armies of bot accounts that can sow discord online at the click of a button.
The Kremlin is now using a combination of the two tactics, Lomas said, adding that we can see in real time how critical posts about the UK are “being amplified by overseas anonymous accounts [and] real-life figures… There are people that believe what Stephen Yaxley-Lennon says, regardless of how extreme it is, because they’ve bought into him.”
Sophie Williams-Dunning, a researcher at Royal United Services Institute, said: “Russia is one of the most prolific actors when it comes to conducting hybrid campaigns to influence the politics of other countries, including the UK.
“These campaigns blend online influence, cyber-attacks and other measures to try to cause offline effects – and events such as the Belfast attack certainly have the kind of incendiary potential that Moscow may seek to harness.”
She added: “If Tommy Robinson is trying to stoke unrest in the UK along these lines, it’s not unreasonable to assume that his agenda complements the Kremlin’s aim of sowing division, undermining public trust, and exacerbating crises.”
The actual impact of Russia’s campaign and Robinson’s visit to Moscow remain to be seen, she said.
Four of the top ten posts about the Belfast protests that called for “remigration” came from outside the UK, according to analysis from the Institute for Strategic Dialogue shared exclusively with this paper. None could be traced to Russia. (“Remigration” is a term used by the far right to call for ethnic cleansing, including the mass deportation of second- or third-generation migrants.)
“The transnational far-right has repeatedly tried to inject itself into any incident where it can promote anti-migrant hate,” said Sid Venkataramakrishnan, an ISD analyst. “This serves two purposes: firstly to support allies in other countries, and to use attacks and crimes abroad to promote their ideologies at home.”
Moscow’s “grey warfare” has also included paying petty criminals to carry out attacks, such as setting fire to a West Midlands warehouse, across Europe.
Elon Musk back supporting Robinson
Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, has also returned to publicly supporting Robinson after appearing to drift away from the Luton-born influencer. The world’s richest man is listed as a paid subscriber to Robinson’s premium posts on X and has shared Robinson’s posts calling for protests.
Musk has also increasingly posted support for Restore Britain, Rupert Lowe MP’s far-right challenger party to Reform.
On Tuesday, Musk shared Lowe’s post promising to “abolish the entire asylum system” if he became Prime Minister, and commented: “Only Restore Britain can save Britain.”
The billionaire does not have a close public relationship with his 80-year-old father, who adamantly denies claims reported in a New York Times investigation that he sexually abused his children and stepchildren. (Three separate police investigations were opened, according to the Times, but Errol has not been convicted of anything. Two of the inquiries ended without charge, while it’s not clear how the third concluded.)
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