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Russia-Ukraine War

A guide to resources related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The war between Russia and Ukraine started in 2014 when Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula, and Russian backed separatist groups declared Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics in the Donbas region of Eastern Ukraine. Russia officially recognized the two separatist republics on February 21, 2022. Three days later, on February 24, 2022, it invaded Ukraine.

The guide is an attempt to provide information on current events as well as historical and political sources.

This resource is a work in progress. 

History and Background

Russia's war against Ukraine 
Ukraine: history, people, geography, society, economy, and cultural heritage
Country Profiles and Data 

BBC News: Country Profiles
Full profiles provide an instant guide to history, politics and economic background of countries and territories, and background on key institutions. They also include audio and video clips from BBC archives.

CIA-The World Factbook
Lists population, government, military, and economic information for nations recognized by the United States.

Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) 
Provides data and forecasts about political, economic, and business climates of various regions. War in Ukraine: view economic analysis report. 

UNdata
Statistical information from member states on a variety of topics.

U.S. Department of State: Countries and Areas
Contains A-Z list of country and other areas.

Independent Media & Fact Checking Sources 

bellingcat: Ukraine
Netherlands-based investigative journalism group that specializes in fact-checking and open-source intelligence. The website was blocked for Russian users on March 14. 

Euromaidan Press
English language newspaper launched in 2014 by Ukrainian volunteers.  

Kyiv Independent 
Ukraine’s English-language media outlet, created by journalists who were fired from the Kyiv Post for defending editorial independence.

Meduza 
Russian independent news website based in Latvia. 

Moscow Echo (Ехо Москвы)  - Currently shut down
Independent Russian radio station. Ехо journalists are currently using this You Tube channel. 

Novaya gazeta Evropa (Новая газета Европа)
A new edition of the Russian independent newspaper "Novaya gazeta" that had to suspend its publication in Russia.  Novaya rasskaz-gazeta (magazine, currently suspended) 

Russia-Ukraine Disinformation Tracking Center: 100+ Putin-Boosting Websites and Ten Top Myths
Russian disinformation sites identified by NewsGuard. 

StopFake
 Fact-checking organization, founded in March 2014 by Ukrainian professors and students.

TV Rain (Телеканал Дождь)
Russian independent news channel. ТВ Дождь was relaunched from Latvia in July 2022 after it halted its operations in March 2022. 
Dozhd archived content (until April 2022):  You Tube channel. 

War in Ukraine
Official website of Ukraine- the information is verified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. 

Spotting Propaganda and Disinformation

Russia's Propaganda War 
Igor Gretskiy, a Research Fellow of the Estonian Foreign Policy Institute at the ICDS, examines key elements of Russia’s propaganda and disinformation that were crucial in the years long preparation of the invasion of Ukraine. International Center for Defense and Security, Estonia. August 2022

Russia as Evil: False Historical Parallels. Some peculiarities of Russian Political Culture 
Despite the obvious similarities, there are significant differences between Nazi Germany and Putin’s Russia. StopFake.org. July 19, 2022

NATO Chief says Alliance Preparing for War with Russia for Eight Years
Jens Stoltenberg has never said anything about any eight-year preparation for war with Russia, nor about NATO’s plans to “attack” Russia. StopFake.org. July 11, 2022

Fact Check-Video shows Ukrainian girl injured by bicycle, not Russian missile
Multiple news sites and social media posts shared a heart-tugging video of a young Ukrainian girl singing the Ukrainian national anthem while her left foot was being bandaged in the hospital. Reuter. July 1, 2022

Red Cross Collected Data on Children’s Healthy Organs in Mariupol
Russian media and social media users allege that the Red Cross is involved in children’s organ trafficking. StopFake.org. June 3, 2022

Fifty anti-Ukrainian propaganda books: How Russian publishers stoke hatred against Ukrainians
"Since 2009, Russia has seen an explosion of books in the fantasy genre focused on the topic of a war with Ukraine, as well as purportedly «historical» literature and general nonfiction titles discussing the «collapse of the Ukraine project» and mocking the independence of the «nonexistent» Ukrainian people and the «artificial» nature of the Ukrainian language." Chytomo, April 4, 2022

Russia’s Bucha “Facts” Versus the Evidence
Debunking Russian claims that the photos and video footage from Bucha staged. bellingcat, April 4, 2022

Russian occupiers launch war on Ukrainian history, burning books and destroying archives
Russian “military police” seize and destroy books on Ukrainian history and culture in the occupied territories in attempt to introduce Russian re-educational programs. Euromaidan Press, April 2, 2022

Seven ways to spot fake photographs of the war in Ukraine
The Art Newspaper, March 2, 2022

NewsGuard Report Shows TikTok Users See False Ukraine War Content Minutes After Signing Up
General Manager Matt Skibinski speaks with CNN’s Brian Stelter on Reliable Sources, March 2022

How Social Media is Changing the Battlefield
Many are calling Russia's invasion of Ukraine the TikTok war. CNN, Reliable Sources, February 27, 2022

The real and imagined history of Ukraine
Vladimir Putin says Ukraine isn’t a country. Yale historian Timothy Synder explains why he’s wrong. Vox, February 25, 2022

How to fight pro-Russia disinformation in Ukraine
MIT Management, Sloan School, February 1, 2022

Fact vs. Fiction: Russian Disinformation on Ukraine 
U.S. Department of State, January 2022

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