THE ROLE OF STATE PROPAGANDA IN FORMING ANTI-UKRAINIAN SENTIMENT IN MODERN RUSSIA

During the last two decades Russian-Ukrainian relations have undergone drastic changes: from “brotherly nations” to “unfriendly” countries. In 2014 the Russian Federation started to carry out large-scale propaganda campaigns aimed at justifying the annexation of Crimea and the occupation of the Donbass region. In almost a decade it managed to take over the media sphere in the country and create a strong state-supported propaganda mechanism able to shape its public perspectives and guarantee the support of the government actions in Ukraine. The purpose of this research is to provide a structured and chronological analysis of the successful propaganda work in Russia aimed at incitement to hatred and xenophobia against Ukraine during the wartime period from 2014 to the present day. This work, based on qualitative and quantitative analysis, focuses on independent non-governmental Levada Center statistics, official documents and the information activities of the Russian government in the media sphere. Firstly, it examines and systematizes the main concepts, techniques and instruments of Russian propaganda, emphasizing the diversity of the conspiracy theories and their particular role in shaping citizens’ perceptions of Ukraine. Secondly, it provides a quantitative analysis of the social environment, in which propaganda mechanisms operate. Levada Center statistics based on the surveys among the Russian population help to explain the creation of the “information bubble” and, as a result, successful implementation of the propaganda strategy in Russia. Both analyses are necessary for understanding the dynamics of state information campaigns and their contribution to the increase of Anti-Ukrainian sentiments in Russia. The research contributes to the existing scientific literature on the topic, introducing a new method of propaganda studies based on analysis of the social environment, in which the strategy is implemented.