A NOTE: Our Russia-Ukraine Resources are updated weekly - if you're accessing the page a week or more past the below date, pieces mentioned in this post may have been removed to make room for up-to-date resources.
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Updated Resources - November 29, 2023
Pavillion 1 - Ukrainian Tech Ecosystem at Web Summit Lisbon. November 15 2023. ("Ukrainian Tech Ecosystem - PAV 1" by Web Summit is licensed under CC BY 2.0)
KEY DEVELOPMENTS
Kyiv Independent: Newsfeed
Novaya Gazeta Europe: Newsfeed
The Insider: Newsfeed
Telegram app icon on smartphone screen (perspective render) ("Telegram app icon on smartphone screen illustration." by Yuri Samoilov is licensed under CC BY 2.0)
WHAT'S ON OUR MIND
In addition to our weekly resource update, today we also offer an updated collection of pieces on the Israeli-Hamas war.
Following a demonstration of natural forces in this weekend’s severe storm on the Black Sea, we look to a manmade force of similar might. At the start of Russia’s invasion, a number of experts warned that the coming war would transcend the physical to be borne out instead on digital battlefields alone, primarily through cyberattacks. Predictions that this conflict would mark a turning point in the warring of man did not come to pass. And though this conflict did not induce the paradigm shift portended by some, the war’s digital reverberations on the real world are significant. In today’s Ukraine War resource update, we contemplate this intersection, from its subtle but insidious impact on perception to the opportunities presented for the war’s most vulnerable.
In Russia, The Moscow Times and Meduza cover ongoing Kremlin crackdowns online. The former covers the placement of Meta (an organization labeled ‘terrorist and extremist’) spokesperson, Andy Stone, on the wanted list. The latter reports that federal censor Roskomnadzor is authorized to obstruct access to websites that provide instructions for bypassing website blocks. Meduza also provides a brief retelling of Putin’s recent plenary at the Artificial Intelligence Journey 2023 conference in Moscow where he called for the advancement of Russian AI models rooted in ‘traditional Russian culture.’
Information, state rhetoric, and the digital battlefield collide in Novaya Gazeta Europe’s analysis of pro-war Russian social media posts; the analysis pays particular attention to their connection to the Russian state. A separate analysis from The Insider uncovers a surge in bot activity spreading images and fake quotes attributed to Western celebrities, including Oprah Winfrey and Beyonce, that urge the cessation of Western aid to Ukraine. On the other side of the digital frontline, Meduza examines the ‘Elf Legion,’ an ‘army’ of anti-Kremlin, anti-war commenters backed by the Free Russia Foundation. Russia.Post shifts attention to the popular messaging platform Telegram, unpacking the platform’s pro-war ‘Z-community’. This piece covers the diversity of perspectives and sentiments towards the Kremlin within this segment of Russian society as well as its potential as a political force.
In Ukraine, while people are similarly susceptible to information warfare, coverage is rooted in the promise of the digital space. Kyiv Post reports on the nation’s participation in the annual Web Summit, Europe’s largest technology gathering, and the war’s fortifying effect on Ukraine’s IT field, prolific in its outsourcing of services in the global technology market. The Guardian highlights the winners of the 2023 International Children’s Peace prize, three Ukrainian teens who developed a pair of mobile apps for refugee children.
Finally, we step back to examine the broader implications. The Conversation provides two articles offering guidance on confronting disinformation online, including the detection of fake videos. In a third piece, the publication shares analysis suggesting that digital conspiracy theorists are linking the Ukraine and Israel-Hamas Wars, and adds guidance to combat the conspiratorial spread.
In the overview, the Chatham House on Ukrainian democracy, the Holodomar Museum Director on Ukrainian famine and genocide under Stalin, and a journalist on Russian rhetoric surrounding the Maidan Revolution. Find also historical perspectives on democracy and the transfer of power within Russia, as well as comparison of the current and historical circumstances of Crimean Tatars.
In videos, Blair A. Ruble on how Ukrainians explore the meaning of their country and culture through art. Also in videos, four experts on the Middle East, Ukraine, Russia, and China explore the global repercussions of the Ukraine and Israel-Hamas wars. In the arts, Scythian artifacts return to Kyiv after a years-long fight, an anti-Putin Russian refugee artist supports Ukraine through his works, and an examination of the Kremlin’s ‘penance system’ for artists who once opposed the war.
Find these stories and more in today’s Ukraine War resource page update. Visit our blog for updated resources on the Israel-Hamas War, including a number of perspectives on the recent ceasefire as well as a message from network member Soulaiman Khatib, a Palestinian peacebuilder and cofounder of Combatants for Peace.
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