Abstract

The article offers a comprehensive historical-political analysis of the evolution of the informational dimension of armed conflicts – from the polytheistic legitimations and sacral inscriptions of antiquity to the multidimensional hybrid and cognitive operations of the twenty-first century. Drawing on an interdisciplinary approach, it synthesises the main Western concepts of hybrid warfare, narrative warfare and cognitive warfare, which emphasise, respectively, the synchronisation of kinetic and non-conventional means, the construction of dominant narratives in public consciousness, and the preventive management of audience cognitive biases. Comparison with the Ukrainian empirical experience – from volunteer fact-checking initiatives such as StopFake and InformNapalm to state strategic-communication institutions – makes it possible to identify an innovative model of “network resilience,” in which the horizontal mobilisation of civil society significantly accelerates responses to destructive information influences. The author demonstrates that the current stage of information technology in warfare is marked by a transition from linear propaganda dissemination to algorithmic, “exponential” disinformation, wherein automated bot networks and generative AI models produce volumes of content that far exceed the capacity of traditional verification instruments. In this context, the Ukrainian case acquires exceptional importance as a testing ground for complex counter-disinformation strategies that combine rapid cyber measures, legal blocking of aggressor information resources, and strategic communications by domestic and international security actors. The study proposes a typology of information operations based on their level of institutionalisation (state, hybrid, civil) and their dominant instrument of influence (narrative, simulacrum, archetype). It also formulates an indicative set of metrics – from frame frequency and replication speed in social networks to target-audience trust indices – suitable for cross-national comparison of information-campaign effectiveness. The practical value of the research lies in developing methodological guidelines for building national and collective resilience to hybrid threats, while its theoretical contribution consists in detailing a conceptual apparatus that harmonises Ukrainian and international political-science discourses on information warfare.