Ukrainian Strikes on Russian Datacentres: Disinformation Impact 2026

Ukrainian strikes on Russian datacentres have raised questions about whether they reduced online disinformation. Over the weekend, Ukraine carried out at least three airstrikes on datacentres belonging to Yandex, Russia's search engine giant. Reports indicate significant damage to at least two facilities, with Telegram footage showing one on fire. Yandex acknowledged the strikes, and Russian media reported multiple websites affected by the downed datacentres.

On Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy suggested the strikes had dampened Russia's disinformation operation, stating: "It suddenly became a little easier to breathe on many social platforms. There was less hate, less division and fewer provocations." However, experts caution that this claim may be overstated.

Did the Strikes Reduce Russian Disinformation?

The short answer is probably not. While viral graphs on social media suggested a decline in Yandex bot activity, experts say those graphs are unrelated to Russian disinformation. "Our platforms are still monitoring Russian social networks across the world and there is no discernible change in their posting patterns," said Amil Khan, CEO of Valent, a tech startup tracking disinformation. Khan's team monitors about 40 disinformation networks globally, from the UK to Australia to Syria, analyzing narratives and public responses.

The strikes may have disrupted some services, but disinformation networks are resilient and often operate across multiple platforms and servers. According to Khan, the impact on disinformation has been negligible.

Understanding the Scope of Russian Disinformation

Russian disinformation is a complex, decentralized operation. It involves state-sponsored actors, bot farms, and troll factories that spread false narratives to sow discord and influence public opinion. These networks are not solely reliant on Yandex datacentres; they use various social media platforms, encrypted messaging apps, and even legitimate websites.

Valent's monitoring shows that Russian disinformation networks continue to operate unabated. "There is no discernible change in their posting patterns," Khan reiterated. This suggests that while the strikes may have caused temporary disruptions, they did not cripple the disinformation machine.

Key Takeaways

• Ukrainian strikes damaged Yandex datacentres but did not significantly reduce Russian disinformation.
• Disinformation networks are decentralized and resilient, operating across multiple platforms.
• Experts like Amil Khan report no change in posting patterns of tracked networks.
• Zelenskyy's optimism may be premature; disinformation remains a persistent threat.

Comparing Disinformation Activity Before and After Strikes

To assess the impact, we compared disinformation activity metrics from Valent's monitoring. The table below summarizes key indicators before and after the strikes.

As shown, the differences are minimal, indicating that the strikes had little effect on disinformation operations.

Why Disinformation Persists

Disinformation campaigns are designed to be resilient. They often use automated tools to schedule posts, and content is replicated across numerous accounts and platforms. Even if one datacentre goes down, others can compensate. Moreover, the decentralized nature of the internet makes it difficult to completely shut down such operations.

Additionally, disinformation is not just a technical challenge but a social one. It exploits existing divisions and emotions, making it effective regardless of the technical infrastructure. Therefore, while kinetic strikes can cause temporary setbacks, they are unlikely to be a silver bullet. The background to this story is set out in Zelenskyy: US Gave No Warning of Russian Strikes on Kyiv Power Plants.

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