Across platforms, influencers and trolls act like soldiers, wielding memes, jokes, misinformation, and real news as ammunition. The online arena has become another battlefield in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. On one side, NAFO stands for the North Atlantic Fellows Organization, while activists and bots support Kyiv, and others aligned with nostalgia for the Soviet era, conservative groups, and provocateur farms from Moscow. The clash unfolds in cyberspace as a modern extension of real-world hostilities.
The information war against Ukraine did not start with the 2014 crisis in Donbas. As Yevhen Fedchenko, editor-in-chief of StopFake, explains, the campaign began long before, shaping perceptions of Ukraine as dysfunctional or fascist to audiences abroad. These narratives amplified any incident linked to far-right groups in Ukraine or distorted the broader situation, especially among Russian and Western audiences.
Internally, the goal was often to destabilize through disinformation. Local media outlets aligned with Moscow served as channels, a pattern later mirrored in European countries. Audiences in each nation tend to trust domestic outlets more than foreign ones, which made Kremlin-linked portals outside Russia attractive for spreading a favored version of events. In response, digital activists on the opposite side of the line began coordinating to counter these propaganda efforts and provide alternative viewpoints.
Humor, Memes, and News Against the Kremlin
Humor and satire have become essential tools for many audiences covering the war, notes Fedchenko, referencing groups like NAFO. Soon after the Russian invasion began, a grassroots digital resistance formed, with participants adopting playful profile pictures featuring a Shiba Inu dog. This crowd includes both public figures and ordinary users who push back against the Kremlin narrative. Their aims extend beyond spreading critical analyses; they also circulate memes that lampoon Russian messaging and ridicule pro-Kremlin voices.
Among the most recognizable figures in the Spanish-speaking world is a user known as Martín Tuitero. He describes to StopFake the early start of his online activism, even before the NAFO movement grew prominent. He emphasizes the importance of this digital front in the broader war, arguing that it’s a hybrid conflict where online actions support the conventional military dimension and aim to destabilize Western societies.
Disrupting Western and Ukrainian coherence remains a feature of this hybrid war. Activists contend with efforts that include creating perceptions of energy shortages, promoting unregulated migration, and backing political factions that fragment unity. In their view, notable events such as the downing of a passenger jet in 2014 and the Bucha massacre in 2022 are cited to show how state-sponsored disinformation can sow confusion and erode trust.
Fedchenko argues that information warfare can be more impactful than some conventional methods and notes its particular resonance in the Global South—regions where Russia has sought to undermine Western influence. Yet, he also highlights the most important outcome of NAFO and similar efforts: keeping Ukraine center stage and sometimes even filling gaps left by traditional media.
Counter-NATO Narratives
To challenge anti-Ukrainian and anti-NATO messaging online, thousands of users are ready at their keyboards to push back. A key tactic has been the use of troll farms, structures where workers are paid to shape social media narratives in favor of their patrons. Notable figures in this space include Yevgeny Prigozhin, the late Russian figure associated with the Wagner group, who described these campaigns as efforts to counter Western propaganda and influence other nations such as the United States, Germany, and France.
Alongside anonymous trolls and bots, numerous individuals connected by ideological sympathy for the Kremlin or opposition to the Western alliance contribute to the online war. A prominent example is a former Spanish military officer who maintains a YouTube channel and voices anti-Western rhetoric, echoing Kremlin lines and amplifying voices of other veterans serving with Russian forces. This activity and related outlets have drawn attention from observers noting foreign influence operations in multiple contexts.
The larger takeaway is that online influence campaigns are part of a broader strategy to shape perceptions, test weaknesses in public discourse, and rally support across borders. The line between informational content and strategic messaging remains thin, and researchers emphasize the need for vigilance, credible reporting, and continued monitoring of state-sponsored narratives across social platforms.