CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2025
| Author | Hirsch, Conall Robert |
|---|---|
| Title | Strategic Alternative Reality: An Analysis of divergent Russian post-factum Disinformation regarding Ukrainian Ceasefire Negotiations from January-May 2025 |
| Summary | The Russian Federation is one of the most prolific actors in using hybrid warfare tactics to achieve its strategic objectives; a potent instrument utilized to achieve these is its extensive disinformation apparatus. This consists of both direct rhetoric from President Vladimir Putin and his officials, as well as dozens of subsidiary websites which publish disinformation articles disseminating Kremlin propaganda. These efforts have been utilized to justify as well as obfuscate the realities surrounding Russia’s repeated invasions of sovereign Ukrainian territory in the wake of the 2014 Revolution of Dignity through 2025. This thesis investigates Russian disinformation concerning Ukraine in the specific context of the second Trump administration, focusing on the period of January-May 2025. The research questions investigated are as follows: to what extent have Russian disinformation narratives evolved in this period compared to pre-2025? Secondly, what can these specific narratives elucidate regarding the Kremlin’s strategic objectives? This thesis analyses 156 Russian sponsored articles in conjunction with Vladimir Putin’s six official public mentions of negations in 2025. The study finds that post-factum efforts, I.E. disinformation published in a retaliatory and defensive manner to specific wartime developments, far outnumber those which are preemptive or which purport more overarching narratives that contribute to Russia’s overarching alternative strategic reality. Furthermore, post-factum efforts increase dramatically in frequency in the wake of European declarations of support for Ukraine, as well as American and Ukrainian negotiation developments. These findings suggest that the disinformation is largely being employed in a defensive and retroactive manner, and diverges from the pre-2025 context by predominantly focusing on negotiations. |
| Supervisor | Etkind, Alexander |
| Department | International Relations MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2025/hirsch_conall.pdf |
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