Last week, the Russian media discussed whether the death penalty should be brought back to Russia. The propaganda lamented that criminals should be severely punished rather than allowed to live in warm Russian prisons.Читати українськоюAlso, after the terrorist attack in Crocus, there was talk of the need to tighten migration policy. And while Ukraine is accused of the terrorist attack in statements, Tajiks face physical violence. Russian law enforcement agencies have joined the anti-immigration hysteria. They even discussed the need to introduce a visa regime with Central Asian countries. We have also seen another surge in the information campaign against the Armenian leadership. Nikol Pashinyan joins the club of "Russophobes" and "traitors" to the Russian people.Read about this and more in the new issue of our monitoring of Russian state media and manipulative websites that target Russian disinformation.

The terrorist attack on the Crocus City Hall was the biggest news on Russian media last week. As soon as the first reports hit the Internet, it was clear that Russian propagandists were determined to blame Ukraine. It was as if the disinformers were running a creativity contest with just one task: connect Kyiv to the terrorist attack in any way possible.Читати українськоюMargarita Simonyan, the top propagandist and the RT editor-in-chief, hurried to tweet it was the unbrotherly Ukrainians: “All evidence points to the fact that the attack was planned by our not-quite-brothers”. Former president now blogger Dmitry Medvedev called to kill the Ukrainian leadership: “All those people must be found and eliminated as terrorists without mercy including the top officials of the state that launched such an atrocious attack”.The accusations remained even after ISIS terrorists had claimed responsibility for the attack. The disinformers argued that it was Ukraine’s tactic to shift responsibility onto Islamists.According to Russian media, the United States might also had a hand in the incident: they warned about the terrorist attack which appears suspicious. Moreover, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova believes that Washington is using ISIS to undermine America’s competitors.This monitoring report covers these and other topics of the disinformation spread by Russian state media and online parajournalists to manipulate public opinion.

Politically, it is nearly impossible to justify direct intervention in a high-intensity conflict with significant human losses to voters. Opposition arguing against "our guys dying somewhere in the Donetsk or Tauride steppes" would likely hold a winning position in the debate and garner greater sympathy from the electorate. However, if we put aside the political context and focus solely on military rationale for deploying troops in Ukraine, there are compelling arguments in favor.Читати українською.

Today, guided aerial bombs (GABs) have become one of the most terrifying types of Russian weapons at the front. These are old munitions (FABs—high-explosive air bombs) weighing from one to one and a half tons, to which the Russians have attached wings and flight correction equipment.

The benefits of studying disinformation on YouTubeYouTube is one of the most popular social media in Poland and Ukraine: two-thirds of the people in each country have an active account and use the platform to watch entertainment and informational content. The recommendation algorithm is the heart of YouTube: personalized, high-quality selections of similar videos keep viewers on the platform to maximize advertising profits and help users find videos of interest more easily.Читати українською

Last week, Russian propagandists tried to take full advantage of the capture of Avdiivka. Among other things, they reported on shocking “discoveries” of secret torture chambers allegedly used to hold Zelensky’s political opponents.Читати українською The Russian Ministry of Defense also claimed that the AFU was planning to build a “chemical defensive perimeter” and had already purchased the necessary components from Western partners that endorse such methods of warfare. Meanwhile, the disinformers have redoubled their efforts to expose US and British agents in mother Russia.

A pilot with the call sign Smoke, having just returned from a three-day combat mission where he fired FPV drones at enemy targets, goes straight to the workshop.Читати українськоюIn a special place with shelves, drawers, and long tables with antennas, transmitters, fasteners, screwdrivers, soldering irons, computers, and 3D printers, he is supposed to help with a problem that some drones had with video.Here is his unit's drone workshop.Using the example of this workshop, we will tell you how such workshops came to be and how they helped in the war.

Last week, Russian media celebrated the capture of Avdiivka which is said to mark a new phase of the war that paved the way for Russia’s victory. In addition to protecting the people of Donbas from the Ukrainian Nazis, the Russian army is said to be preparing a large-scale offensive to capture the entire region. The disinformers avoid mentioning the cost of flying the Russian flag over the rubble of the destroyed city — instead, they claim that Avdiivka is Zelensky’s Waterloo. The news of Navalny’s death also received considerable attention, but no surprises here: it was said to have been orchestrated by the West to disrupt the presidential election in Russia.This monitoring report covers these and other topics of the disinformation spread by Russian state media and online para journalists to manipulate public opinion.

Last week, Russian media finally decided who their favorite American was. American journalist Tucker Carlson ticked all the boxes: he respects Putin, understands Russian national interests, and is ready to broadcast the Kremlin’s position. Carlson instantly became Russian propaganda's darling and the focus of media attention. Carlson’s visit coverage culminated in Putin's interview which was touted to have broken through the information blockade set up by the West.

On the night of February 15, the Russians again attacked Ukraine with missiles of various types. The Ukrainian Air Force shoots down most of the Russian hardware flying into our territory, but some missiles still reach their targets. We have figured out the trajectory of hundreds of kilograms of explosives flying towards us.