Russia is well aware that it cannot win the war as long as Ukrainians believe in victory and do not give up. That is why Russians are trying to demoralize Ukrainians and promote the thesis that Ukraine cannot win or has already lost, that Russia's losses are either trivial or untrue, that the West will abandon Ukraine, that there is no need to mobilize, and so on. The Russians are ready to use any option - lie, manipulate, change meanings, falsify and conceal facts. The main thing for the Russians is to sow discouragement and demoralize.
The Kremlin has long since realized how important this area is and is investing money, time, and resources in it. This work is done not only by the Russian media, bot farms, and various talking heads who cooperate with the Russians. Useful idiots are also used.
“Unfortunately, the Russians are also using the mistakes of the Ukrainian government, which is clumsy in the information sphere and relies on people like Podoliak or Arestovych, and then gets caught because of their ineptitude.”
Yes, I believe that Zelenskyy was wrong when he refused to name the number of killed Ukrainians. This gave the enemy the opportunity to manipulate and lie, while the number of occupying Russian troops killed is much higher. Yes, I think it was a big mistake to close the borders. But as I follow the corruption schemes that were built on this, I am well aware that it was not even a mistake, but a planned action to enrich certain groups.
By the way, the example of Israel, where the number of deaths is reported and the borders are not closed, shows who is right. Yes, today there are problems with Western funding, but they are not such that everything is lost, and the situation will be corrected. But the Russians are still trying to use all this, hyperbolizing and lying. And this is not surprising. Because information warfare is one of the components of the overall strategy. And the Russians do not neglect this component.
By the way, Russians have evolved. They have become better at using the Ukrainian language. Russians are no longer lying as blatantly as they used to. But the main thing hasn't changed - Russians are trying to demotivate Ukrainians. Always remember this when you see comments from Russians, comments from non-names with Russian narratives, and posts from various non-names like "Marichka Ukrainka" or "Nazar Kamianiar" who say that everything is lost, that there is no need to fight, that everyone has betrayed us, or that we should go to the Maidan. This is the PSYOP of the Russian special services. Although we have enough idiots of our own.
Therefore, always use critical thinking and do not forget that Russians always lie.
How do you know if Russians are lying? If they open their mouth or write something, they are lying. This is an axiom. And unlike theorems, they do not need to be proved. Axioms need to be known and remembered. We also need to believe in ourselves and the Armed Forces and remember that we did not start this war, and we are fighting for ourselves, for our families, for our country, for our right to live in our country according to our laws. And it is not for Russians to tell us how to live.
About the author. Boryslav Bereza, public figure, former member of the Ukrainian parliament.
The editors don't always share the opinions expressed by the authors of the blogs.