Russia launches special information operation against Budanov and Zaluzhny - political strategist
Russia has launched a new special information operation aimed at creating a rift between the head of the GUR, Kyrylo Budanov, and commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valeriy Zaluzhny.
The ultimate goal is to undermine the credibility of Budanov and weaken the positions of the Ukrainian negotiating team.
This was stated by political strategist Oleh Posternak during a roundtable talk at the Interfax-Ukraine agency entitled "InfoLight - 2026: Challenges and Solutions for the Information Space", organized by the NGO Foundation for the Promotion of Democracy.
"A new special operation started on January 28: fake 'insider' messages on Telegram channels and social networks allegedly about the conflict between Budanov and Zaluzhny, with 'secret documents' about the detention. This is being spread by Kremlin bots. The goal is to split the military leadership and sow distrust in the army," Posternak emphasized.
According to him, the campaign to discredit Budanov includes narratives about "nepotism", "nuclear terrorism" in the context of the Zaporizhia NPP, and "unfulfilled predictions". Some of these theses are actively disseminated by Ukrainian opinion leaders, in particular from the pool of Petro Poroshenko. As an example, the expert cited Artie Green's broadcast on January 6, where accusations were made against the GUR and its leader without evidence.
"This is not spontaneous criticism, but a coordinated technology of reflexive management. The goal is to weaken the positions of Ukrainian negotiators during negotiations with the USA and create the illusion of internal division," the political strategist emphasized.
He also drew a historical parallel with the internal conflicts in the UNR of 1918–1920, which led to the disorganization of the army and the fall of the state.
"Today it is the same scenario, but with the use of AI, social networks and the speed of dissemination," Posternak noted.
The expert outlined three waves of future attacks: "traitors in power" are already underway, "resistance is futile" - preparation for surrender; "guilty of defeat" - after compromises and for chaos.
As a countermeasure, he proposed operational refutations, public statements from real military personnel, and a check by the SBU of Artie Green's possible ties to the Russian Federation.
"Our task is to publicly analyze these technologies so that society is not led to emotional chaos and delegitimization of power," Posternak concluded.