Portrayal of military operations as “adventures” provoking devastating retaliation

What it claims

Ukrainian strikes on Russian targets are framed as wasteful operations that only invite devastating retaliatory attacks on critical infrastructure. The actions of the defense forces are depicted as components of a “kamikaze country” scenario aimed at provoking a humanitarian crisis. The destruction of industry and logistics is portrayed as an inevitable collapse, aiming to sow doubt about the point of resistance and push society toward concessions under the guise of peace agreements.

Target audience

Examples (paraphrased)

We paraphrase rather than quote: propaganda's exact wording is built to spread, so we carry the claim and not the craft. Each example cites the post it came from.

• Zelenskyy is preparing a catastrophic winter with famine for Ukrainians just to gain PR from military adventures.

  Легитимный, 12 Aug 2026

  t.me/legitimniy/23028

• Ukraine is effectively destroying its own economy and metallurgy by implementing a forced kamikaze country scenario.

  Легитимный, 11 Aug 2026

  t.me/legitimniy/23023

We link archived copies rather than the posts themselves, so that checking our work sends no traffic to the source. Where a platform cannot be archived, we print the post's address instead of linking it.

Goal

To sow despair regarding the feasibility of resistance and pressure the civilian population into demanding surrender under the guise of “peace agreements.”

Techniques used

• Appeal to Fear / PrejudicePredicting a “Black Winter 2.0” with hunger and cold as a consequence of the government's actions.
• Loaded LanguageUsing labels like “escalation adventure” and “kamikaze country” to discredit the defense strategy.

The real grievance it exploits

Fear of winter blackouts, food shortages, and the loss of livelihoods due to constant shelling.

How to counter

• Reframe: The aggressor attempts to shift responsibility for its own war crimes and shelling of civilian infrastructure onto the victim of the attack, labeling legitimate self-defense as an “adventure.”

Sources (all time)

• ЛегитимныйTier 11,026,169 subscribers
  4 posts · 11–12 Aug 2026

  • 12 Aug · t.me/legitimniy/23028
  • 11 Aug · t.me/legitimniy/23024
  • 11 Aug · t.me/legitimniy/23023
  • 11 Aug · t.me/legitimniy/23021
• ШЕЛЕСТTier 1137,608 subscribers
  2 posts · 14 Aug 2026

  • 14 Aug · t.me/shelestlive/30560
  • 14 Aug · t.me/shelestlive/30558
• ЗеРадаTier 1424,887 subscribers
  6 posts · 15–18 Aug 2026

  • 18 Aug · Archived copy
  • 17 Aug · t.me/ZeRada1/31866
  • 17 Aug · t.me/ZeRada1/31864
  • 16 Aug · t.me/ZeRada1/31851
  • 15 Aug · t.me/ZeRada1/31845
  • 15 Aug · t.me/ZeRada1/31842
• РезидентTier 1903,549 subscribers
  6 posts · 12–14 Aug 2026

  • 14 Aug · t.me/rezident_ua/30235
  • 14 Aug · t.me/rezident_ua/30233
  • 13 Aug · t.me/rezident_ua/30229
  • 13 Aug · t.me/rezident_ua/30227
  • 12 Aug · t.me/rezident_ua/30212
  • 12 Aug · t.me/rezident_ua/30209
• Одесский партизанTier 33,587 subscribers
  3 posts · 14–19 Aug 2026

  • 19 Aug · t.me/odessa_partizan/3613
  • 17 Aug · t.me/odessa_partizan/3604
  • 14 Aug · t.me/odessa_partizan/3598