top of page
ANALYTICS


NATO’s capability development: A call for urgent reform
Photo by Marina Militare In today’s fast-evolving security environment, NATO finds itself at a critical crossroads. Rapid technological...
5 days ago


What we have learnt about FIMI after three years of full-scale war in Ukraine
By Mykola Balaban and Serhii Zhukov The modern level of economic, political, and informational globalisation offers vast opportunities...
Mar 19


Belarus: Lukashenka’s sham election and shift towards a Chinese political model
On 26 January 2025, Belarusian dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka announced his ‘overwhelming’ victory in his seventh presidential election,...
Mar 18


The Baltics Adapt to Trump
The Baltic states have had the US as a steadfast ally since the end of Cold War but may now have to build regional defenses as Washington...
Mar 17


Ghosts Haunt Poland’s Future
The prospect of the US abandoning Europe is raising profound questions in Warsaw. Poland is nearing a crossroads. It has been there...
Mar 14


Russia’s Interference Freezes NATO Exercise
Moscow’s hybrid war has stopped a NATO military exercise in Romania. President Vladimir Putin’s disruptive meddling is causing serious...
Mar 10

The end of transit: Russian propaganda in search of new ways for Russian gas
The Ukrainian-Russian agreement on the transit of Russian gas to European countries expired on January 1, 2025. This step severed the...
Mar 5


‘Freedom Is Dearer Than Life’ Says Jailed Georgian Journalist
From prison, Mzia Amaglobeli has become a symbol of resistance against Georgia’s oppressive pro-Russian elite. In a photograph taken in...
Feb 28


Why is the Kremlin so hung up on smearing Zelenskyy?
According to the Kremlin: A drug addict, a dictator and a puppet, oligarch, collector of Nazi memorabilia and a Nazi himself, an agent...
Feb 27


The Plague of Sexual Violence Against Ukraine’s Prisoners of War
Ukrainian prisoners of war are suffering sexual violence and rape, compounded by a suffocating silence that isolates them from the world....
Feb 19


Inflation, stagflation, and spin – the Kremlin’s economic war propaganda
Russia’s economy is under pressure, but the Kremlin does not want you to know it. Instead, Moscow has launched an all-out campaign of...
Feb 18


Poland and the Battle to Beat Russian Despotism
As Ukraine’s biggest democratic neighbour, Poland has done everything in its power to help Kyiv. There’s every reason to continue that...
Feb 14


Moscow Embraces Soviet Visuals to Justify War
Soviet imagery and narratives have been a central part of Vladimir Putin’s justification for his assault on Ukraine, and his propaganda...
Feb 6


Don’t Know: Even Now
As crises loom, questions still outnumber answers. By Edward Lucas. Lithuania’s Snow Meeting is less famous than Davos. But the night-owl...
Feb 4


Revival of the Stalinist sport parades in Putin’s Russia
Putin’s fight with ‘neoliberal’ international sports On 17 October 2024, a few months after the Paris Olympic Games, Putin took part in a...
Jan 27


Putin’s Limbless Generation Struggles for Support
Vladimir Putin’s propagandists can’t hide the growing number of disabled war veterans struggling with inadequate or non-existent...
Jan 24


“Gas Gangrene” of Kyiv and Moscow: The Informational Component
For the last three decades, Russia has wielded gas pricing and supply as instruments of political influence. What changed in 2025?...
Jan 22


"True Europe," "Eurasian Civilization," "Russkiy Mir": How Moscow justifies its imperial ambitions across different regions of the world
This analysis examines how Putin's Russia constructs its image to justify political and military interventions in various parts of the...
Jan 16


Romania Pays the Price for Kremlin Interference
The country has been plunged into political instability by a Russian campaign that no one saw coming. Romania avoided a bullet, but the...
Jan 6


Eastern Europe’s “Isolation Belt”: Russia’s Informational Influence on the 2024 Elections
How Moscow exploited elections in Moldova, Georgia, and Romania to undermine Ukraine? The year 2024 stands out as a historic moment for...
Jan 2


Revisiting Russia’s narratives on its Syria intervention
As Russia pulls back its forces and equipment from Syria following what was undoubtedly a strategic defeat, let’s revisit Moscow’s...
Dec 23, 2024


Baltic Power Shows Way on Hybrid Threats
The Baltic states, with a long history of Russian interference, offer a model for tackling hybrid threats. On Halloween, Lithuania marked...
Dec 12, 2024


How to Counter Russia’s Hybrid Threats? First, Make Them a Priority
Moscow’s hybrid war on the West needs a robust and smart response, which means coordinated action from the European Union. The hybrid...
Nov 28, 2024


Making Russia Pay for Hybrid Attacks
There is a range of actions the West can take to counter Russia‘s malign activities. With the problem worsening, they need to be swiftly...
Nov 19, 2024


Russian Cossacks Join the Kremlin’s Imperial Mission
The Cossack identity has become an increasingly potent symbol for both Russia and Ukraine, and responses to the festival of Pokrova show...
Nov 12, 2024


Analysis: Why Moldova is a make-or-break moment to combat Russian interference
Moldova upcoming presidential election and referendum on joining the EU is an urgent test for Russia’s ability to interfere globally for...
Oct 18, 2024


Beware — Mystery Balloons Can Carry a Punch
Hybrid warfare is getting ever closer to the line of all-out warfare. As usual, the Baltic states are the testing ground. Photo source...
Oct 15, 2024

Goebbels in a Skirt: Exposing Diana Panchenko
Diana Panchenko is no stranger to Ukrainian screens. Known for her work on Kremlin-sponsored outlets since 2018, she has long branded...
Sep 19, 2024


Georgia: The next colour revolution?
On 1 August, a contentious law on ”transparency of foreign influence” took effect in Georgia. The law imposes unduly strict controls on...
Sep 2, 2024


Lukashenka’s cemented dictatorship in Belarus: four years since August 2020
Four years have passed since the rigged 9 August 2020 presidential election in Belarus. Ordinary people are labelled traitors and...
Aug 28, 2024


Kremlin information, manipulation, and interference in the Lublin Triangle (Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania) and Moldova
Kremlin efforts to manipulate and interfere with information are an ongoing challenge in the countries of the Lublin Triangle, or L3, a...
Aug 23, 2024


Russia’s Digital Tech Isolationism: Domestic Innovation, Digital Fragmentation, and the Kremlin’s Push to Replace Western Digital Technology
Russia’s technological isolation is both a reality and a desired goal for Moscow. This piece explores the impacts of this phenomenon and...
Aug 22, 2024


OT Cyber Policy: The Titanic or the Iceberg
Current policy does not address the issue of cyber-physical security with a systemic approach, instead focusing with tunnel vision on...
Aug 2, 2024

Shady Horses of Russian Propaganda: Candace Owens: “F**K Ukraine”
Candace Owens is an American political commentator, news anchor, podcast host, and one of the most outspoken and influential “spewers” of...
Jul 30, 2024


Tailored Russian disinformation targets Polish farmer protests
Kremlin-backed actors attempt to sow division between Poland and Ukraine. BANNER: A Polish demonstrator partakes in the blockade of the...
Jun 27, 2024


Doppelganger Strikes Back: Unveiling FIMI Activities Targeting European Parliament Elections
The pro-Kremlin Doppelganger campaign continued its copycatting and reality-distorting activities during the European Parliament...
Jun 26, 2024

Another battlefield: Telegram as a digital front in Russia’s war against Ukraine
In this new report, the DFRLab investigates the role of Telegram in Russia since the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Banner: Paper...
Jun 18, 2024

Kremlin Shady Horse: Vincenzo Lorusso. Classic Russian propaganda with an Italian aftertaste
The project “Shady Horses” delves into investigating Russian propaganda dissemination within Western countries through prominent...
Jun 11, 2024


Manipulated voices: Belarus’s disinformation targeting Lithuanian democracy
In the days leading up to Lithuania’s 2024 presidential elections, which were held in May 2024, a foreign information manipulation and...
Jun 10, 2024

Kremlin Shady Horse Ilan Șor: The main voice of Russia in Moldovan politics
The project “Shady Horses” delves into investigating Russian propaganda dissemination within Western countries through prominent...
May 29, 2024


The Tragic Fate of Cultural Heritage in Occupied Territories
The tragic fate of cultural heritage in occupied territories is a result of deliberate destruction by Kremlin authority, neglect, and...
Apr 22, 2024


Regional Resilience: Ukraine’s Path to Victory
With the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the local authorities faced many challenges related to the war. During...
Apr 11, 2024

Elections with a shift to the right: how could the Dutch coalition impact Ukraine?
Written by UCMC/Hybrid Warfare Analytical Group Migrants “Brought it” to the Elections Last summer, the Dutch coalition government...
Apr 9, 2024


Ukraine’s Security Council Secretary: The West is still in denial over Russia
When the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Ukrainian Security and Defense Council Secretary Oleksiy Danilov...
Mar 22, 2024


Russian milbloggers falsely accuse Kazakhstan of opening a NATO military facility
Russian military bloggers threatened the Central Asian nation after it opened a new conference hall at a training center for UN...
Feb 14, 2024


What He Said and What it Really Means – “Interview/ history lecture”
Putin opened the Kremlin’s doors to the fired former Fox News host, right-wing extremist Tucker Carlson as microphone-holder for a two...
Feb 13, 2024


Stalin Revived and Admired in Russia
Positive attitudes toward the deceased, former Soviet dictator are at a record high. (Source:@EtoBuziashvili/DFRLab via The Moscow Times)...
Jan 30, 2024

“North Korean Rus”: The Image of the DPRK in Russian Propaganda
The rapprochement between Moscow and Pyongyang is causing concern in the West because of the supply of North Korean weapons to the...
Nov 17, 2023


Israelis Know Who Stands Behind HAMAS
In the wake of the horrific attacks orchestrated by HAMAS on October 7, which left an estimated 1,400 Israelis dead and over 220 taken...
Nov 7, 2023


Estonia Closes the Crypto Market Hole
Over 1500 Suspected Crypto Companies Shut Down Among Regulation Breach and Ties to Russia. Photo: Agency «Moscow» / snob.ru Estonia has...
Oct 24, 2023
bottom of page