Putin's administration appoints overseer of information space in occupied territories – ISW

The Russians are planning to create a media conglomerate called New Regions in the occupied part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, with the support of the Russian federal government. They had already appointed Sergei Kiriyenko, First Deputy Head of the Russian Presidential Administration, as the chief of this conglomerate.  

Source: Institute for the Study of War (ISW)

Details: Kiriyenko led the efforts to "consolidate sociocultural control of occupied areas of Ukraine via the information space".

ISW stated that Yevhen Balytskyi, the occupying governor of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, stated that he met with Kiriyenko on 31 December during a meeting with workers of the cultural sphere in occupied Zaporizhzhia Oblast. 

Kiriyenko and Balytskyi reportedly discussed the development of cultural programmes of the Russian leadership in occupied Zaporizhzhia Oblast for 2024, including the creation of the New Regions media conglomerate, which will work on media projects in occupied Ukraine with the support of the Russian federal government.

The Russian media outlets already reported in June that the Russian occupation authorities had begun attempts to reformat the information space with the help of unified and centralised media agencies.

To quote the ISW’s Key Takeaways on 31 December: 

• Russian President Vladimir Putin used his annual New Year's address on 31 December to concretise Russian ideological priorities for 2024, notably omitting any mentions of the war in Ukraine and instead focusing on setting ideological conditions for the upcoming year.
• Russian forces conducted another series of missile and drone strikes against Ukraine on the night of 29-30 December and on 31 December, underscoring a notable recent increase in the percentage of Russian Shahed-136/131 drones penetrating or avoiding Ukrainian air defenses.
• Russian forces, particularly Russian airborne (VDV) Forces, are reportedly suffering heavy losses in simultaneous infantry-heavy Russian offensive operations on multiple fronts.
• A prominent Kremlin-affiliated Russian military blogger argued that ethnic Russians do not have enough domestic power in Russia while reiterating a common Russian information operation aimed at erasing Ukrainian identity.
• Russian and Ukrainian forces conducted positional engagements along the entire line of contact, but there were no confirmed map changes on 31 December.
• Russian Presidential Administration First Deputy Head Sergei Kiriyenko is spearheading efforts to consolidate sociocultural control of occupied areas of Ukraine via the information space.

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