THE KREMLIN’S HYBRID AGGRESSION: GEOPOLITICAL ROOTS AND INFORMATION STRATEGIES IN THE RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN WAR OF THE 21ST CENTURY

Abstract

The article examines the geopolitical prerequisites of the Russian-Ukrainian war at the beginning of the 21st century, focusing on hybrid-information challenges. The author analyzes Russia’s attempts to revive Soviet influence over Ukraine through asymmetric methods, including propaganda, cyberattacks, and social media. Drawing on works by S. Huntington, H. Kissinger, V. Horbulin, and others, it explores the historical roots of the conflict from the Cold War to the annex-ation of Crimea and events in Donbas. Emphasis is placed on narratives like the «Russian world,» economic blackmail, and information operations in destabiliz-ing Ukraine. Conclusions highlight the shift from classical wars to «soft power» aimed at undermining European security and creating divisions within NATO/EU. Specifically, it concludes that the Kremlin regime’s «hybrid policy» has always aimed to undermine the Central European and Baltic states’ sense of security from NATO and the EU, as well as to create a confrontation between the United States and its European allies, and between Western allies and Central European states. It is also noted that information and ideological means, including the use of cyberspace, have been perhaps the Kremlin regime’s most important tool of hybrid information pressure. At the same time, so-called hybrid wars, which are covert in nature and observed primarily in the political, economic, and information spheres, are replacing classic military aggression. The essence of this approach is a shift in focus from the physical destruction of an adversary within a large-scale war to the use of «soft power» against an adversary country with the goal of disintegrating it, replacing its leadership, and bringing it into the Kremlin’s sphere of influence. Overall, the study emphasizes the need for a more in-depth study of hybrid threats to formulate an effective national security policy.