As Russia’s war against Ukraine has marked two grim milestones – 4000 days since the initial invasion in 2014 and 1000 days since the full-scale invasion in February 2022 – a comprehensive analysis reveals how the Kremlin has systematically deployed information warfare alongside its military campaign. This multifaceted assault on truth and reality has been just as calculated as the physical invasion itself.
The foundation of aggression: denying Ukraine’s right to exist
From the outset, Russia’s war against Ukraine has been built on denying Ukraine’s sovereignty and its right to exist as an independent nation. The Kremlin methodically prepared the ground for its physical invasion through an extensive campaign of historical revisionism, deliberately twisting facts and rejecting responsibility for past actions while cynically invoking World War II imagery to paint itself as a victim fighting against “Nazism.”
The machinery of hate and control
This historical distortion has been accompanied by a systematic campaign of hate speech in Russian state-controlled media, designed to dehumanize Ukrainians and prepare the Russian public to accept war crimes and atrocities. To maintain this narrative, the Kremlin has implemented unprecedented domestic censorship through restrictive laws, police repression, and the physical dismantling of independent information infrastructure in occupied territories.
The cult of personality around Vladimir Putin has been weaponised to maintain domestic support for the invasion, justify repression, and project power internationally. This personality cult is reinforced through a comprehensive overhaul of Russia’s education system, where pro-Kremlin disinformation and historical revisionism have become deeply embedded in everything from school textbooks to university departments run by state security officials.
Hiding crimes through disinformation
As evidence of war crimes and atrocities has mounted over the 1000 days of full-scale invasion, Russia has deployed massive disinformation campaigns to obscure its actions. This extends beyond military operations to the weaponisation of basic needs, with Russia using its global disinformation apparatus to shift blame for its deliberate disruption of food security and energy supplies.
Evolving tactics in the information war
The Kremlin’s disinformation tactics have grown increasingly sophisticated, including the “Doppelganger” campaign that impersonates Western media outlets through fake news sites and coordinated social media manipulation. Russia has also exploited complex and emotionally charged topics like CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear) threats to sow fear and undermine accountability, while engaging in nuclear fearmongering to spread panic and defeatism.
The weaponisation of peace
Perhaps most cynically, Russia has sought to weaponise the very concept of peace itself, following a well-worn authoritarian playbook of pretending to seek peace while actively waging war. This manipulation aims to confuse global audiences about who is the aggressor and who is the defender in this conflict.
Looking forward
As these dual milestones pass, it’s clear that Russia’s war against Ukraine is not just a military conflict but a comprehensive assault on truth, reality, and the international order. Understanding and exposing these information warfare tactics remains crucial for maintaining global support for Ukraine and resisting the Kremlin’s attempts to reshape reality through propaganda and disinformation.
The war continues, but so does the fight for truth. In recognizing these tactics, we strengthen our collective resilience against information manipulation and stand firm in support of Ukraine’s sovereignty and right to exist as an independent nation.
Don’t be deceived. Stand with Ukraine.
Article and pictures first time published on the EUvsDisinfo web page. Prepared for publication by volunteers from the Res Publica - The Center for Civil Resistance.
