Russian Lies

My first visit to Ukraine—Lara’s third trip—has certainly given me a deeper understanding and appreciation of the situation and the people. It has also highlighted how affected we all are by our information sources. It is well known that Russia is a very effective producer of propaganda and misinformation for their own benefit. Sometimes subtle, sometimes not so. This has been true since well before the rise of our beloved internet, but what the Kremlin is achieving online now around the world should frighten everyone. From governments to communities to families to our children, the influence of the internet is all-pervasive. We have underestimated its power and influence to our peril.

The genesis of much fracturing around the world, at all levels, can often be traced, in no small part, to online influence. Yes, fracturing and turmoil have been a part of our human condition for most generations, but there is no doubt that this has accelerated thanks to us all being as “connected” as ever. This worldwide connectivity, many expected, would bring us all together in understanding, leading to one big peaceful global village. One important factor we overlooked in our rush into the revolutionary and exciting world of exponential information and idea sharing was the potential for influence from “undesirable” or “unfriendly” actors.

We are waking up to the harm social media is causing many of our children. The attitudes of young men toward women are being influenced by figures like Andrew Tate. All this is alarming indeed, but there are much bigger actors at play in our information spheres. Actors that, most dangerously, we are totally oblivious of. Actors who were quick to see the potential of working this global connectivity in their favour. Actors who do their best to hide their involvement in the genesis of theories, ideas, rumours, and doubts. Human traits have allowed these actors to often let us do their work for them. Once we start down a rabbit hole, our fellow warren dwellers or groupies can easily start creating our own narratives in the direction they were wrongly pointed. COVID is an example of an extreme blowout in rabbit holes and theories.

Well, we all know about the dangers of algorithms, I hear you say. Yes, great, we all need to be aware of the ability of algorithms to create bias and reinforce a particular view. Algorithms indeed are mostly a help to these “actors” once a person starts down a certain path. But it goes much deeper than algorithms—it goes to the information itself. Some actors use information, true, false, or a mix, to create or support a narrative. Now, the ways of this are myriad, but without a doubt, we humans can be led to almost any viewpoint if we are exposed to enough information surrounding it.

Enter the Kremlin. It is well known that the psyops program of the Kremlin is unparalleled. It was big before the internet, but has exploded since. They saw the potential for influence in this new technology, and how right they were. Many are aware of the Russian troll farms—Russian bots are everywhere, pro-Russian actors are everywhere, and they can often be picked by those who know, but sadly, many don’t know or don’t notice. Now this is challenging enough to deal with, but Russian psy-ops goes even deeper. It can go to the very “spirit” of the information we get. Very slight changes in information can result in a very different effect of the message. Seeds of doubt can have a significant impact on us. Clever “linking” of issues makes you feel like you see the link yourself, which leads further down the abyss. Straight-out lies are used, but this usually works most effectively on the already indoctrinated. This is a broad subject, and I encourage us all to become more aware of our online vulnerability. Many of us, I believe, would be horrified if we could shine the light of truth onto a map showing the beginnings and growth of what we currently hold as “facts.” Twitter has recently activated the ability for users to view the “country of origin” of other users. It shows an incredible level of “international” users impersonating within many “popular” movements.

Many terrible events happened in Ukraine during the six weeks we were there. I watched to see if any would make Australian news. Concerningly, none did until the shocking event of drones striking a kindergarten in Kharkiv, and even then, not many showed it. We know, without a shadow of a doubt, that this terrible event occurred. Now I have better things to do than fight the overwhelming flow of “lies” online. By the time you do what’s required to discount one, ten more have arrived. Even then, it seems that disproving it matters little. For example, the young boy who was supposedly crucified by the Ukrainian army in Donbas was quickly shown to be a total Russian fabrication, yet it still lives on ten years later.

I haven’t searched, but I’m sure there will be all kinds of misinformation circulating about this kindergarten strike. One that was shared quickly by a Russian influencer was that it was fake because the kids being carried out had clean clothes. Any takers on that theory? At first glance, this seems like a valid point. Annoyingly, with us humans, it seems to only take small seeds of doubt to change our views. This is an often-used Kremlin tactic—they’ve used it heavily since the invasion of Ukraine in 2014.

In Kryvyi Rih, we heartbreakingly witnessed tiny little kids being rushed back inside as the air raid siren went off. They’re especially sensitive with their kids in this city, as a missile hit a kids’ playground there in 2024, killing 35 children. They don’t just go inside, though—they go down into a bomb shelter, cellar, or stronger room. This is why most of the kids were clean on exiting the kindergarten in Kharkiv.

Firstly, though, I must ask why? Why does Ukraine have to defend itself against Russian propaganda and lies? When did Putin gain a level of trust or respect that makes him worth listening to? Russia’s atrocities and war crimes count—not just in Ukraine but also in Chechnya, Syria, and Georgia—make them ineligible for any favour, any leeway, any acceptance, any valued place in a civilised, just world. Russia’s determination to exterminate Ukrainian identity is not a new thing and has been very obviously in action during this invasion. History is a good teacher—research the Holodomor for starters, and no, it wasn’t a natural famine as Russia would still insist you believe, but a Russian-forced one inflicted on Eastern Ukraine, starving millions. Horrendous story. Russia has been shown to tick all the boxes to qualify as committing genocide on Ukraine during this invasion. There is no justification for, or room for acceptance of, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia’s documented and proven war crimes since 2014 and their treatment of civilians really put Putin’s army and the Kremlin near where Hitler’s Nazis were.

Russian targeting of non-military targets in Ukraine can never be acceptable, it is a very long, disgusting list of non-military targets. So many innocent lives taken or forever damaged. Where FPV drones are involved, you can, shockingly, often view the videos from Russian soldiers who regularly post them on channels like Telegram. The attitude shown in the Russian soldiers’ and civilians comments to these posts is deeply distressing and alarming also.

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia has been sowing doubt about every one of their atrocities. Not only that, but they also often try to blame Ukraine in some way. The “fake news” path is a well-trod Russian narrative. It is heartbreaking to see how many Australians have been led down the path of negativity, even hostility, toward Ukraine by cunning Russian misinformation, and this comes not just from within the sphere of this invasion but also from within greater global theories and conspiracies.

Another common Kremlin tactic is, after seeding doubts or claiming the now-popular “fake news” ground around Ukrainian announcements on Russian horrors, they reflect their own atrocities back on Ukraine, calling out Ukraine for barbarous acts similar to what they did, which Ukraine didn’t do at all. It enrages the Russian population, keeping them supportive of the war, but also muddies the waters globally. By the time this is discounted or called out, the news cycle has moved on, fewer people care, it’s no longer “clickbait”, and often the damage remains done. Russians, thanks to their controlled media, remain none the wiser.

Since Ukrainian independence from the USSR, Ukraine has constantly faced Russian interference and has struggled valiantly to rid its society of the old, corrupt Soviet systems and way of thinking. They seem to be doing a commendable job peeling their country from Russian influence and the old Soviet corrupt ways, but it is an immense job, ingrained by years of Soviet rule—it is, after all, how the Soviet system works. Many believe that Zelensky’s government’s effectiveness in breaking free from Kremlin influence played a significant part in why Putin decided on the full-scale invasion in 2022. In Putin’s mind, Ukraine is not a country and has no right to exist. Putin could not tolerate his waning influence in Ukraine. A free Ukraine seeking EU integration was an abomination in his mind—he could not bear losing his dreams of the return of the empire.

The Ukrainian people make an impressive country. Very diverse, very resilient, very smart, very friendly once you break through that serious façade. Witnessing the suffering and plight of so many villagers was heartbreaking. Although they were financially poor, they generally lived happy and contented lives on their land within their communities. Many fled the Russian invasion with nothing. I spoke with an elderly village man who, while insistently sharing his beautiful homegrown grapes, told us how he chose not to flee but to stay, as he thought the Russians wouldn’t harm him. How wrong he was. He was grateful to have survived the invaders—his brother, who was his neighbour, did not. As he showed us the many relics and damage of war around his garden and shared his stories, he incredibly showed no sign of anger or hate toward the perpetrators, though he prays for them a speedy retreat from a victorious Ukraine. He now has no teeth and much damage to his body, thanks to the invading army.

I do not know the answer to stopping the interference of Russia and the like in our information sphere. The “horse has bolted,” so to speak. It would not matter what truths I presented, backed by facts and evidence, regarding Ukraine. Many people’s minds are well made up for an alarmingly diverse array of reasons. Many will be grinding their teeth reading this, I know. It is an alarming fruit of our online world that truth and justice can be so easily dismissed or drowned under half-truths, rumours, lies, and seeds of doubt. When you think about it, an event is created by a thread of single connected truths. It is easy to create many alternatives at each connection, burying the truth. As humans, we too easily join in on creating or reinforcing these alternatives to truth if we get “passionate” enough about something. Examples of the truth being buried abound. I find it very disheartening.

So from the start of this invasion, Ukraine has faced much unimaginable barbarism. Much of it is well-proven, which is why the ICC seeks to hold Putin accountable for justice to be served. I know just the mention of the ICC will get some people grinding their axes—I’m one to a degree. As a case in point, however, the views and theories of some people regarding the ICC are so deeply ingrained that they are highly unlikely to even acknowledge that flawed information may, just may, be behind their negativity towards the ICC, let alone lead them to re-examine their treasured foundations more deeply.

Dismissing the ICC may seem harmless enough. However, when foundations based on falsehoods cause us to be blind to injustice, or even outright evil, it becomes a potentially much bigger, more dangerous, and more urgent problem. Especially when an extremely high percentage of our population is forming their foundations around social media feeds, which are being so openly influenced by so many players with motives we would not accept.

Consider the wide variety of attitudes and beliefs about the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Foundational beliefs surrounding this are highly varied, which leads to a wide range of attitudes. For example: Ukraine is not our war, or Ukraine is to blame in some way, or the “West” is to blame, or it’s the military-industrial complex at work, or globalists, or BlackRock, or Russia’s invasion is justified, or Russia is standing for “family values” against a depraved woke West, or believing, as do most Russians, that Ukraine is evil and committing atrocities, or thinking Russian atrocities in Ukraine are just Ukrainian “fake news” propaganda. Tragically, this list could go on and on.

Never mind my personal experiences in Ukraine—if I share them framed positively around Ukraine or negatively around Russia, many automatically dismiss me as spreading Ukrainian propaganda or being blinded by MSM, blah blah. So much evidence, indisputable evidence, has been collected around Russian atrocities since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, and they continue. Russia has been continually caught spreading misinformation on a myriad of subjects around Ukraine. Yet somehow, Russia is not an international pariah. Australia even still buys its oil—go figure. America is almost treating them as equals, friends, and business partners. Who would have thought?

So, for those who think Ukraine should just surrender, you are wrong. This is not an option. Terror would envelop their lives, many would die, and all would suffer. They would finally cease to be the distinct culture and people that they are.  Considering what they have faced throughout their history, the fact that Ukraine still are a distinct and proud nation is an incredible feat.  The Kremlin have clearly and continually shown their abhorrent attitude and intentions since the beginning of their invasion of Ukraine, and this shouldn’t be acceptable on any scale or allowed in any civilised world.

We said after WWII, “never again.” Well, there are many parallels with Russia and Ukraine and Hitler and the Jews.  We need to, at all levels, wake up and step up to this immense threat to the world.

I do not have the answers to the problems our connected “information” society faces. For now, all we can do is tread more wisely and carefully online, and not let ourselves be dragged down into unhelpful, even dangerous, rabbit holes. Regarding Ukraine, try and step outside the emotion of any narratives and just consider the immensity of injustice and evil Russia has inflicted on Ukraine. Simply see the clear right and wrong, black and white, good and evil this invasion represents—it is not rocket science. I think the abuse of the internet by dark players requires government intervention, but that in itself would be fuel for the likes of Russia to sow further disharmony in our country.

To our “democratic, freedom-loving” government: Stop being governed by concerns around polls and start doing what is right and just. Support Ukraine more—there are many ways we can. If Ukraine falls, blood will be on our hands. If it happens, I’m convinced that we would look back at the fall of Ukraine as a disastrous turning point in history we will very heavily regret.

To Russia with truth