Since the power shift in Ukraine in February 2014, Russia engaged in hybrid war tactics, notably occupying Crimea and supporting separatist forces.

Military & Paramilitary OperationsUnconventional / ParamilitaryProxy forces, militias, mercenaries (e.g. Wagner-type groups)

Aggressor

Summary

Russia's hybrid war tactics in Ukraine have effectively incapacitated the newly formed Ukrainian government since the power change in February 2014. The situation escalated with the swift occupation of Crimea and the subsequent support of pro-Russian separatists in Eastern Ukraine, leading to significant political and security instability.

Classification

Confidence: High

Classified as an aggressor event due to documented evidence of Russian hybrid warfare tactics and military engagement in Ukraine, leading to significant instability and the occupation of Crimea.

Source URL

https://fiia.fi/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/fiiareport43.pdf

Open source

Provenance

Publisher: extension
Submitted: Feb 1, 2026, 00:14 UTC
Last updated: Nov 8, 2026, 23:06 UTC
Event time: Feb 28, 2014, 00:00 UTC

Published as a hybrid-warfare signal with a public source and reviewer-approved assessment bands. See the methodology for how records are assessed.

Raw record

{
  "id": "88106e28-11a0-4f4c-a177-9680426a3f50",
  "url": "https://fiia.fi/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/fiiareport43.pdf",
  "source": "extension",
  "status": "approved",
  "category": "Military & Paramilitary Operations",
  "subcategory": "Unconventional / Paramilitary",
  "incident_type": "Proxy forces, militias, mercenaries (e.g. Wagner-type groups)",
  "country": "Ukraine",
  "source_reliability": "C",
  "info_credibility": "3",
  "tags": [
    "Russia",
    "Hybrid Warfare",
    "Ukraine Crisis",
    "Separatists",
    "Military Operations"
  ],
  "nodes": [],
  "countries": [],
  "where_text": "Land",
  "headline": null,
  "description": "Russia's hybrid war tactics in Ukraine have effectively incapacitated the newly formed Ukrainian government since the power change in February 2014. The situation escalated with the swift occupation of Crimea and the subsequent support of pro-Russian separatists in Eastern Ukraine, leading to significant political and security instability.",
  "summary_short": "Since the power shift in Ukraine in February 2014, Russia engaged in hybrid war tactics, notably occupying Crimea and supporting separatist forces.",
  "summary_extended": null,
  "actor_primary": "Russian military",
  "target_primary": null,
  "location_text": "Ukraine",
  "location_region": null,
  "location_coordinates_lat": 48.379433,
  "location_coordinates_lon": 31.16558,
  "location_precision": "Regional",
  "is_aggressor_signal": true,
  "signal_type": "HYBRID_SIGNAL",
  "is_hybrid_war_signal": true,
  "classification_complete": true,
  "hybrid_signal_complete": true,
  "classification_confidence": "High",
  "classification_rationale": "Classified as an aggressor event due to documented evidence of Russian hybrid warfare tactics and military engagement in Ukraine, leading to significant instability and the occupation of Crimea.",
  "event_time_utc": "2014-02-28T00:00:00.000Z",
  "end_time_utc": null,
  "event_time_confidence": "unknown",
  "created_at": "2026-02-01T00:14:39.315Z",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-08T23:06:55.215Z",
  "reliability_band": "strong",
  "location_precision_band": "regional",
  "time_precision_band": "unknown",
  "severity_band": "significant",
  "attribution_confidence_band": "high",
  "attribution_basis": "single_source"
}

Public assessmentReliability: StrongSeverity: SignificantAttribution: HighSingle sourceTime: UnknownLocation: Regional

Source reliability

Info credibility

Event time

Feb 28, 2014, 00:00 UTC

Event time confidence

unknown

Location

Ukraine

Primary actor

Russian military

Country

Ukraine

Tags

Russia, Hybrid Warfare, Ukraine Crisis, Separatists, Military Operations

Loading signal...

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