Title: A guide to Russian propaganda. Part 5: Reflexive ControlEuromaidan Press | News and views from Ukraine
Headings: A guide to Russian propaganda. Part 5: Reflexive Control
A guide to Russian propaganda. Part 5: Reflexive Control
Examples of Reflexive control used in Russia’s war against Ukraine
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Content: Apart from the undoubted benefit of having a considerable military presence in Crimea, information operations played an important role. The local population was conditioned to fear the Euromaidan revolution in Kyiv and the occupying troops were unmarked – an act of deception. The latter impacted the locals because it was unclear who was the enemy that needed to be resisted, and western officials and Kyiv were prevented from making the proper reaction. Additionally, the military buildup on Ukraine’s eastern border obfuscated Russia’s real intentions – distraction; thus, Ukraine’s will was paralyzed and it decided not to transfer troops to Crimea, as it appeared there was a real possibility of an invasion on the eastern front. The Ukrainian authorities were prompted into making this decision with the help of Ukraine’s western partners, who abhorred the possibility of a war in Europe – aka pacification: “Both Americans and Germans in one voice ask us not to start any active actions, because, according to their intelligence, Putin will use it to start a large-scale land invasion. We have to hear Western partners, and they need time to make decisions,” said Valentyn Nalyvaichenko, then-head of the Security Service of Ukraine, at an emergency meeting of Ukraine’s NSDC on 28 February 2014. The ongoing de-facto occupation of Donbas, in which Russia has been maintaining two puppet statelets that keep fighting against the Ukrainian army with the help of Russian troops and weapons, is an example of a reflexive control operation which targets different audiences. The Russian-backed militants in Donbas are fed fake news about supposed Ukrainian atrocities to keep them fighting against Ukraine, while the Russian population is conditioned to support the Donbas militants and Putin.