How the Kremlin uses the situation in Israel against Ukraine – The Institute for the Study of War
Experts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) point out that the Kremlin will use the Hamas attack on Israel to promote narratives about the reduction of US and Western support and attention to Ukraine.
ISW writes about it.
Analysts note that the Kremlin has already used and will probably continue to use Hamas attacks on Israel to promote information operations aimed at reducing US and Western support and attention to Ukraine.
The Kremlin stepped up several information operations after the Hamas attacks in Israel on October 7, primarily accusing the West of neglecting conflicts in the Middle East in favor of supporting Ukraine.
Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council, Dmytro Medvedev, said that the United States and its allies should “engage” in working on a “Palestinian-Israeli settlement” and not “interfere” in Russia’s affairs and provide military aid to Ukraine.
The Russian Foreign Ministry accused the West of blocking the efforts of the necessary “quartet” of Russia, the United States, the European Union and the United Nations, which led to the escalation of violence, placing responsibility for the current hostilities on the West.
Russian propagandist Serhii Mardan said that Russia will benefit from the escalation, as the world “will be distracted from Ukraine for a while and will once again be engaged in extinguishing the eternal fire in the Middle East.”
Experts say these Kremlin narratives are aimed at Western audiences to drive a wedge into Ukraine’s military support, attempt to demoralize Ukrainian society by arguing that Ukraine will lose international support, and are intended to reassure Russian domestic audiences that the international community will ignore the war effort. of Ukraine.
The report also notes that several key sources in the Russian news space shifted the focus of their daily coverage to the situation in Israel on October 7, which could affect the information environment surrounding the war in Ukraine in the coming days or weeks.
Many Russian “war correspondents” focused mainly on the Hamas attacks in Israel on October 7, and some promoted the Kremlin’s information operations, claiming that the West’s attention had shifted from Ukraine to Israel.
Such attention to Israel even prompted one Russian “war correspondent” to urge others not to “forget” about the war in Ukraine.
“Currently, ISW cannot predict how the source environment will change in connection with the deployment of Hamas attacks in Israel,” experts add.