In Vladimir Putin’s now infamous interview with Fox News journalist Tucker Carlson, the president continued a proud tradition of his Russian administration. The president spent hours rhapsodising Russia as a victim, a country that is perpetually under assault from the unjust and subversive forces of the West. This narrative is in line with the rhetoric used by his government since its illegal seizure of the Crimean Peninsula back in 2014, and has been extensively debunked. Additionally, Putin’s regime continues to propagate disinformation regarding both Russian-Ukrainian relations, as well as Eastern European history as a whole. While there has been extensive coverage of both Putin’s views regarding Ukraine and the exact stance the Russian government has taken regarding the country’s history, it remains important to ask why continuing to spread disinformation remains a central part of the Russian government’s international strategy two years into their invasion.
To answer that question, it is crucial to first break down how Putin’s regime has continually attempted to manipulate history. There are two general avenues that his administration has taken towards historical revisionism, the domestic and the foreign. The Russian government began exploring the domestic avenue even prior to the 2014 Russian annexation of the Crimean peninsula. However, in recent times their foreign approach has taken centre stage, both in terms of media coverage, and the regime’s investment into international subversion.
Domestically, the administration has propagated the idea that Ukraine is not a country, but rather a region of greater Russia, harkening back to Soviet perspectives on the Union’s constituent republics. The spread of this belief is seen in both the dissemination of information throughout Russia and through the fundamental use of language regarding both the country and the conflict. Russian media parrot the stance taken by Putin’s regime, continually repeating blatant disinformation and flatly denying Ukraine’s statehood. Given the restrictions placed on access to information in the country, many citizens are unable to gain any perspective other than the one fed to them by the compromised media. Ukraine is still commonly referred to as “the Ukraine” in Russian news, and the invasion continues to be called a “special military operation,” downplaying both Ukraine’s status as a sovereign nation, and the scale of Russian activities in the country. These ideas, as well as mentions of Russian rebirth under Putin, accounts of Western subversion in Russia, and the pride in the Soviet Union’s legacy have been placed into school textbooks, mainstream news, and are repeated ad nauseam by the Russian government.
Regarding the foreign approach, during the last decade, Western nations have seen a sharp uptick in reports of Russian misinformation and disinformation. The years since the start of the invasion have seen a particularly notable spike in narratives meant to manipulate public perception surrounding the ongoing situation in Eastern Europe, with a concerningly large amount of them garnering attention, and some even becoming viral. A database regarding many such narratives can be found here. All of these narratives focus on changing people’s views surrounding further support of countries and actions that oppose Putin. Additionally, they engineer sympathy for a Russian president who is responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of Russians, and an uncounted number of Chechens, Ukrainians, and others.
Drawing from both their rhetoric and their actions, the Russian government’s agenda is to muddy the waters surrounding Russia and Ukraine in order to diminish popular support for Ukraine in the West and at home. Through manipulating their own citizens, as well as changing the outlook of all international spectators, they are ensuring that domestic support for their war effort remains high, while international support for Ukraine is bogged down in the system of checks and balances that make up every democracy.
Unfortunately, their strategy has proven effective.
In many nations which previously supported Ukraine unconditionally, support has plummeted. Politicians who oppose continued support have begun coming out of the woodwork, claiming that it is not the responsibility of Western nations to interfere in Eastern European affairs. Many also point to the idea that money spent on the defence of Ukraine is money not spent on bettering infrastructure or healthcare or a million other, ever-present, domestic concerns.
While spending on Ukraine is not an insignificant expenditure, these individuals fail to grasp that supporting Ukraine is supporting the continuation of a democratic Europe, and making a statement to the world at large. The invasion of Ukraine is only the most recent in a long tradition of authoritarian powers attempting to exert their influence, mostly through force of arms, on countries they believe belong to them. Failing to defend Eastern Europe at this juncture is conceding to such powers, and would allow many disinformation narratives regarding Russian superiority to entrench themselves. A cutting of support and the likely consequent Russian victory would indicate that despite everything, Putin was right in his ambitions.
Furthermore, many countries now supporting Ukraine have committed themselves to a number of agreements concerning the country, including the long-discussed potential for NATO membership. Backing out of all of these agreements would both demonstrate that Western countries are less reliable than they seem, and would undercut the value of many other agreements they have made, especially those concerning other regions and nations in similar situations to Ukraine.
Supporting Ukraine now is ensuring that the growing influence of authoritarian powers will not stop allied nations continuing to support each other, despite the risk. It is deeply important to continue to support Ukraine, to fight foreign disinformation wherever it is found, and to support those countries that stand with values which we share, rather than bending the knee to authoritarian leaders that dream of reviving long-dead dreams of empire. Standing with Ukraine is a message to every leader with dreams like those of Vladimir Putin, a message saying that those who want to conquer are subject to the rules-based international order, same as everybody else.
Disclaimer: Any views or opinions expressed in articles are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the NATO Association of Canada.
Photo: Interview with Vladimir Putin to Tucker Carlson (2024) by kremlin.ru via Wikimedia Commons. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
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