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When Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Russia's “special military operation” into Ukraine nearly three years ago, he claimed that Ukraine was led by “far-right nationalists and neo-Nazis” and that the purpose of Russia's invasion was to “demilitarize and denazify Ukraine.”
At the same time, Russian leaders and propagandists denied the existence of Ukraine and called for purging or cleansing Ukrainian territory, using terms that often mirror rhetoric preceding past genocides.
A new RAND report explores Moscow's use of such falsehoods and propaganda over social media, primarily on Telegram and X, formerly known as Twitter. The authors consider who is spreading and amplifying these extremist narratives, whether propagandists have been successful in reaching broad audiences, and the potential for Russia's narratives to raise the risk of further violence against Ukrainians.
The researchers find that, although Russia has made inroads, Moscow's ability to mainstream its propaganda and mobilize audiences against Ukrainians has been limited. The most virulent extremist conversations on X and Telegram remain highly Russian-language dominated, are concentrated in specific communities, and do not draw much attention from others in the networks.
The limited success of pro-Russian voices to spread the most-virulent narratives suggests that extensive and elaborate U.S.-led campaigns to directly counter these messages may be unnecessary. Rather, Washington’s efforts may be most effective if they are indirect and support other trusted voices.
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