How Russians deepen divisions in Ukrainian society (DS2025)

How Russians use internal dividing lines that exist within nations to weaken them The Ukrainian nation is prone to internal conflicts due to its colonial past. Russians actively exploit this to weaken our country during the war. They can use similar, already proven techniques in other countries as well. Ukrainians joke that their internal online disputes on various issues should be included in UNESCO's cultural heritage. According to sociological research, the roots of this practice lie in the fact that until 1991, Ukrainians rarely had the opportunity to independently determine the fate of their own state. Our study mostly provided by NGO CAT-UA (Communication Analysis Team - Ukraine) focuses mainly on 2022, when Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began. In the first months of this invasion, Ukrainians lived in unprecedented unity, but later returned to their usual quarrels. As a result, online discussions are ongoing, and Russians are taking advantage of this. Similar techniques may well be used in other countries where internal lines of division also exist. Our research into online content reveals which dividing lines Russians can see and which they cannot, where they are more successful and where they fall short. Similar techniques may well be used in other countries where internal lines of division also exist. A preliminary version of this study was presented at last year's event, but due to technical problems with the sound, the organizers asked us to update and re-present our data. Licensed to the public under https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/de/ about this event: https://talks.datenspuren.de/ds25/talk/RDT8XD/