SPRAVDI — Stratcom Centre

Russia has begun blocking Telegram in the occupied areas of Ukraine, despite promises not to restrict it, according to "Donbas Realities". In the Luhansk region, calls in Telegram either don't go through or are delayed by up to 20 seconds. Often, the interlocutor can't be heard at all, and even VPN doesn't guarantee stable connection. Locals report that without VPN, the messenger practically doesn't work, and with VPN - only partially and not everywhere. Earlier, the Russian authorities promised not to restrict Telegram in the occupied territories, as it is used by the military. However, the current disruptions suggest otherwise.

Russia is currently running disinformation campaigns to convince audiences of disease outbreaks among Ukrainian military. 🚫 Russian Lie: "An outbreak of an unknown infection among military personnel in Pavlograd - patients with a temperature of 40°C are falling into a coma" Russian Telegram channels are spreading a video in which a hospital worker allegedly talks about a "massive epidemic" among military personnel. ✅ Reality: There is no confirmation of an outbreak of an unknown infection in the Dnipropetrovsk region. The video comes from a TikTok account created at the end of February, where only one video has been published. The woman's identity could not be established. An analysis shows that the voice is likely generated by AI with a probability of 56%, reports the fact-checking project VoxCheck. Local media in Pavlograd, the city's official resources, as well as informal groups have not reported any epidemic. Similarly, there are no statements from the Ministry of Health and the National Health Service of Ukraine about an infectious outbreak among Ukrainian military personnel.

In the wake of Warsaw agreeing to extradite a Russian caught looting archeological sites in Crimea, Russia has unleashed waves of disinformation, over 1500 articles. The response to the decision of the Warsaw District Court on extradition of Alexander Butyagin was the intensification of an information operation to "whitewash" him and discredit Ukraine. The Center for Strategic Communications has identified at least 1500 FIMI publications on this topic, which at least 5 times exceeds the number of organic materials in global media. Russian resources are promoting messages about a "hostage", "repression against a scientist" and forming an image of a "recognized archaeologist", diverting attention from illegal activities in occupied territories. Key narratives that are being scaled in parallel: 🔹 A "failed state", "external governance" and a "split" of the EU and NATO Ukraine is presented as dependent and weak: they manipulate Zelensky's statements, discredit his visits and reduce cooperation with the West to a "request for help"; 🔹 "Crimea is thriving under Russia" On the anniversary of the occupation, messages about the "development of the peninsula" are being scaled, simultaneously repeating narratives about the "2014 coup" and the "return to the native harbor". 🔹 "The West is weakening and reducing support for Ukraine" Speculations about rising oil prices, risks of a shortage of air defense/missile defense systems due to other conflicts, and the supposedly inevitable reduction of aid are being promoted; 🔹 "Ukraine as a source of division in Europe" The rhetoric of the Hungarian government about blocking European integration is being used, while at the same time, Russia's interference in the information field of Hungary and Slovakia is being recorded. On ~115 resources that systematically spread disinformation, on March 18, ~6,3 thousand materials about Ukraine were posted - this is 1.35 times more than ~1 thousand legitimate media (~4,6 thousand publications). Thus, ~57.5% of materials about Ukraine in foreign languages fall on FIMI resources and Russia's information operations.

With Russia's air defenses now mostly guarding the Kremlin and Putin's palaces, Ukrainian forces continue expanding the scale of reach all across both Ukraine's occupied areas as well as within Russia itself. The Lasar Group reports destroying six BM-21 Grad MLRS units, equivalent to one full battalion, amid a coordinated drone strike operation near Pokrovsk.

A Warsaw court has ruled that the extradition of Russian citizen Alexander Butyagin to Ukraine is legally permissible. Butyagin was detained in December at Ukraine’s request. For years, he conducted so-called “archaeological expeditions” in temporarily occupied Crimea without Ukraine’s authorization, which is essentially merely looting of archeological sites. These activities are illegal under international law and constitute a violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty. Ukrainian authorities also have grounds to believe that his actions contributed to the damage and unlawful removal of cultural heritage from the ancient site of Mirmekiy. The decision of March 18, 2026 is an important step toward accountability. It is not yet final, and the defense has announced an appeal. Ukraine consistently defends its cultural heritage and will continue to pursue legal responsibility for all violations committed in temporarily occupied territories.

“The greatest obstacle to the recognition of Ukraine’s sovereignty is the hypnosis of the very name ‘Russia.’ This hypnosis must be dispelled, especially in America and France. The matter of dividing Russia must be presented as a matter of peace for the whole world, as a matter of European balance, and of real material benefit for states.” – Symon Petliura, Head of the Ukrainian People’s Republic, May 14, 1922

Applause in the German Parliament, as @bundeskanzler rips into members of the Russian-backed AFD party. "the reality of life for the people of Ukraine is a different one, than the one you experience at your cocktail receptions at the Russian Embassy here in Berlin."

The humiliation never ends for Putin, continuing to witness the dismantling of Moscow’s empire, now set to also lose Russian occupied Transnistria. The Moldovan government has presented documents in Brussels on the reintegration of the Transnistrian region. Recently completed, the plan outlines a phased approach to restoring national unity through strictly peaceful means. Its success depends on two core conditions: the complete demilitarization of the left bank and the establishment of democratic governance in the region before its reintegration under Chișinău’s authority.

What's going on in Belgium lately? A network of Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) centers, which masquerade as "Ukrainian churches", working with refugees, has been exposed in Belgium. Journalists Liga.net discovered that some of these "temples" operate in ordinary residential buildings and have the status of non-profit organizations - this allows them to receive state subsidies, despite their subordination to Moscow. During services, visitors' contacts are collected, supposedly for assistance or mailings. In fact, these data can be used for further recruitment. Some priests rent premises and invite Ukrainians under the guise of a "Ukrainian church". According to intelligence data, up to 90% of new parishes in Europe are financed by the pro-Russian oligarch Vadim Novinsky. At the same time, in Belgium, such centers are considered purely religious, which complicates the response. An additional factor is the Orthodox Church of Ukraine does not have the right to establish parishes abroad, which creates a vacuum that the ROC fills.

President Volodymyr Zelensky announced new defense agreements between Ukraine and Spain. The agreements focus on expanding bilateral cooperation, particularly in weapons production and the development of advanced technologies to support Ukraine’s Defense Forces. Ukraine is prepared to contribute its battlefield experience, drone capabilities, and technical expertise. In parallel, Spain is expected to provide key military support, including artillery shells, radar systems, and other critical equipment. Implementation is already underway, with teams from both countries working to operationalize these agreements and strengthen Ukraine’s defense capacity.

Russia is expanding intelligence exchange and military cooperation with Iran. Moscow is expanding its transfer of components for modernized Shahed drones to Tehran, which improve navigation, communication, and strike accuracy, reports The Wall Street Journal. In addition, Russia is sharing its experience in using drones in the war against Ukraine – particularly their usage tactics. A separate area of cooperation is intelligence data. This refers to information about the location of US forces and their allies in the Middle East. Russia is also directly transferring satellite images to Iran. According to sources, such support could have already helped Iran launch strikes on American targets in the region.

Ukraine's Security Services have exposed a large-scale information special operation by Russia against the Hungarian community in Ukraine's Zakarpattia region. This new information-psychological operation by Russian special services is aimed at destabilizing the region and increasing tensions between Ukraine and Hungary. As a result of comprehensive measures, it was established that the Russians are using the so-called number substitution technology via IP telephony to conduct the operation. In particular, the enemy is making "anonymous" calls with threats to representatives of the Hungarian national community from supposedly Ukrainian phone numbers. During the conversations, unknown individuals, pretending to be members of "national-patriotic formations" and even employees of our state's law enforcement agencies, demanded that community representatives leave the territory of Ukraine, threatened physical violence, etc. As a result of the technical measures carried out, it was established that the calls were made from the territory of the Russian Federation. At present, the SBU is working to block the operation.

In Russia, they're afraid of their own "state messenger". Government officials are buying separate phones for "MAX", the new required North Korean style spy app. Russian officials, deputies, and top managers of state companies don't trust the "national" messenger Max and are trying to minimize the risks of using it. As reported by The Moscow Times, citing sources, they're buying separate SIM cards and smartphones - so-called "Maxphones" - to install Max. The reason is simple: in government circles, they believe that installing Max is equivalent to giving access to data to special services. Even those who register in the messenger with their own number use separate devices and don't sync contacts. Despite the pressure, officials are in no hurry to give up on Telegram. In informal communication, they continue to use it and hope that the blocking can be circumvented. Recall that recently in Russia, for the first time, a person was fined for a photo in the Max messenger.

Things don't seem to be going well for the Russians at their 123rd aircraft repair plant in Staraya, now with three holes in a hangar roof, after what locals say was up to seven drones targeting the facility, which services military and civilian transport aircraft.

Not quite in the Top 10 for daily Russian personnel losses, but nonetheless a stellar performance for Ukraine’s Armed Forces the past 24 hours, taking out 1710 wannabe occupiers.

Russia is rebuilding its intelligence network in Europe, and using Vienna is at the center of it. According to the Financial Times, Russian diplomatic facilities in the Austrian capital have been transformed into a major hub for electronic surveillance. From rooftops across the city, upgraded satellite systems are intercepting communications across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The equipment is not aimed at Moscow. It is directed outward – toward targets. Western officials estimate that up to one-third of Russia’s diplomatic staff in Vienna are intelligence operatives. Since 2022, new antennas have appeared, and existing systems are frequently repositioned, indicating active, ongoing collection. Austria’s neutrality has allowed this network to persist, even as other European countries expelled Russian operatives after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Russians are not scaling down. It's expanding surveillance, probing vulnerabilities, and preparing the ground for future operations.

In 2022, when Iran sold the first batch of Shaheds to Russia, Ukraine contacted Tehran and asked not to provide weapons to the Russians. Iran assured that there would be no more supplies. But as we saw, this was an absolute lie. "We told them that if the transferred Shaheds kill our civilians, the Iranian regime will become an ally of Russia. They replied: "No, no, we are not allies in this. But they lied." - President Zelensky He also recalled that Iran did not just provide Russia with "thousands" of Shaheds - it also transferred licenses for their production, allowing Russia the seeds to grow into what it is today, a global problem. More details: pravda.com.ua/news/2026/03/1…

The CEO of @Ukrzaliznytsia has presented Sean Penn with an "Oscar” on behalf of the people of Ukraine.

President Zelensky has addressed the British Parliament. Key points from the President: - The world is entering a new phase shaped by drones and artificial intelligence — transforming warfare, redefining threats, and expanding the reach of crime. - Security is the foundation of everything. Without it, economic strength and social stability cannot exist. Protecting people must come first. - Ukrainian specialists are already deployed across the Middle East — including the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait. A total of 201 experts are working in the Gulf region, sent at the request of the United States under drone cooperation initiatives. - Ukraine has confirmed that Iranian Shahed drones contain components originating from Russia.

The Ukrainian ambassador to Hungary, @FedirShandor has become the target of Russian propaganda resources, which now accuse him of "desecrating" Hungarian symbols. The Center for Strategic Communications @StratcomCentre notes that on March 17, at least 250 Russian resources spread a photo in which Shandor, together with the commander of the UAV Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Robert Brovdi, is holding a Hungarian flag with a cut-out circle. Propagandists present it as a new one and claim that it is supposedly a "insult" to the state symbol. In fact, the photo was published in February 2024. At that time, Brovdi was the commander of the "Magyar Birds" unit, and Shandor was a soldier of the 101st Transcarpathian Brigade of the Territorial Defense Forces. Both are Ukrainians of Hungarian origin. And the flag itself is a symbol of Hungarian resistance to the Soviet occupation: in 1956, the emblem of the socialist Hungarian People's Republic with a red star was cut out of it. Such a flag is still used during the commemoration of the participants of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. Russian propagandists are once again manipulating facts to stir up anti-Ukrainian sentiments in Hungary. @MFA_Ukraine