The Hallmarks of Russia's Hybrid War

The article from April 2026 analyzes how Russia wages its "new generation" hybrid war, characterized by coordinated sabotage, covert influence operations, and cyberattacks directed by dominant intelligence agencies like the FSB, SVR, and GRU. Rooted in Soviet-era active measures and adapted to the digital age with AI capabilities and cyber proxies, Russia's hybrid tactics seek to project power below the threshold of open conflict. The Kremlin's intelligence services have become the core decision-makers, shaping strategic outcomes through deniable operations involving proxies such as criminal hackers and organized crime. The author details three key facets: the increasing influence of intelligence bodies on Russian statecraft; the use of malign active measures and cognitive warfare to erode democratic unity and undermine support for Ukraine; and a persistent strategy of constant pressure through sabotage, cyber intrusion, and assassination plots. The article stresses that these are coordinated parts of an escalatory campaign meant to stretch and divide Western governments and societies. To counter these actions, a unified and resilient transatlantic alliance response is essential to prevent Moscow from exploiting political fault lines and destabilizing democracy.