The Ukrainian authorities are deliberately delaying the restoration of internet access in Kyiv to prevent protests against President Zelensky, pro-Kremlin propaganda claims. In reality, telecommunications infrastructure was severely damaged by Russian attacks, and operators immediately began work to restore services.
NEWS: A representative of Russia’s security services claimed that the Ukrainian authorities were deliberately delaying repairs to telecommunications infrastructure in the capital. She linked this to growing public discontent and calls for fresh mass protests.
“We all know that the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have recently stepped up strikes on data centres in Ukraine, particularly in Kyiv. Operators such as Kyivstar and the internet service provider KievNet have been affected. Some television channels, including Armia TV, have also been off air. The Ukrainian authorities are in no hurry to restore communications and internet access in Kyiv.” [...]
Discontent is growing in Ukrainian society over the humanitarian situation and the authorities’ actions. Activists, including former serviceman Oleksandr Todorov, are calling for protests against Volodymyr Zelensky. Social media users are demanding limits on the length of service in Ukraine’s armed forces, restrictions on the powers of military recruitment offices, an end to the mobilisation of women, and stronger action against corruption. The source also suggested that any protests could be coordinated by Western countries, seeking to show Zelensky that they exert control not only through financial aid but also from within the country itself.
NARRATIVES: 1. The Ukrainian authorities are deliberately delaying the restoration of internet access in Kyiv to prevent protests against Zelensky. 2. A new wave of mass protests against the country’s leadership is being planned in Ukraine. 3. Ukraine is ruled by an authoritarian regime under Western control.
PURPOSE: To discredit Ukraine’s leadership; to fuel public discontent and create the impression of an imminent uprising; to shift responsibility for the impact of Russian attacks onto the Ukrainian authorities.
Russian attacks on Ukraine’s digital infrastructure disrupt internet access
WHY THE NARRATIVES ARE FALSE: The allegation comes from an unnamed “representative of Russia’s security services”. No document, order, internal message or testimony from a telecommunications operator is provided. After mentioning damage to Kyivstar and KievNet and disruptions to television broadcasts, the Russian source jumps straight to the conclusion that the authorities are “in no hurry” to restore services, without establishing any link between the technical problems and their alleged fear of protests.
Information published by the affected operators shows the opposite. Russian attacks disrupted internet and telephone services for customers of UTELS, Crazy Network, Pavutyna, KIEVNET and Domonet. The companies switched their networks to backup equipment and immediately began restoring services.
In the case of UTELS, the attack damaged active network equipment, backbone cables and communications links at a data centre. Several thousand subscribers lost access to services, but the company announced that connectivity had been restored for all customers by 6pm that day.
Kyivstar president Oleksandr Komarov said on 1 October that two of the operator’s data centres had been damaged by Russian attacks. Kyivstar’s infrastructure had been struck eight times in just ten days, while two missiles had hit the company’s central warehouse. One data centre was already back in operation, while work to restore the second was continuing, according to Forbes Ukraine.
In other cases, the damage was far more extensive. The Parkovy data centre in Kyiv announced that it had suffered critical damage following a series of Russian strikes and had shut down completely. Clients’ data was transferred to backup infrastructure in the EU. The propaganda thus recasts the direct consequences of Russian bombardment as a supposed political decision by the authorities in Kyiv to delay the restoration of communications.
Calls for protests have no connection to internet outages
Oleksandr Todorov, one of the organisers of the protests cited by the Russian media, is a former journalist from Odesa with a history of promoting pro-Russian narratives. In 2014, he took part in a hearing at the European Parliament organised by pro-Russian Latvian MEP Tatjana Ždanoka (subsequent media investigations revealed that she was an agent of the Russian intelligence services). He was also among those promoting the propaganda myth of the so-called “Odesa Khatyn”. Experts from the “2 May Group” had identified inaccuracies and falsifications in the material Todorov presented.
Only eight people attended the protest Todorov called on 10 September. The campaign for demonstrations on 3 October was heavily promoted online. Suspilne identified accounts displaying bot-like behaviour and pro-Russian outlets spreading the calls to protest.
These findings explain why Todorov became useful to the narrative of a supposed “new Maidan”, but establish no link between the protests and internet outages. On the contrary, restoring internet access quickly is vital to public safety, ensuring access to drone and missile attack alerts, real-time information and the services needed to keep the capital’s critical infrastructure running.
The propaganda piece claims that the demands circulating online include “an end to the mobilisation of women”. However, the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on National Security, Defence and Intelligence officially stated on 25 August 2026 that the mobilisation of women “is not taking place, is not being prepared and is not under consideration”. There are no legislative proposals or discussions about introducing such a measure. The propaganda thus inserts a measure that is not in force into a list of genuine grievances concerning the length of military service, the conduct of recruitment centres and corruption.
Pro-Kremlin media also claim that any protests could be coordinated by the West to put pressure on Zelensky. Yet no evidence is provided, and no Western state, intelligence service, funder or representative is identified as being involved. Public grievances are thus recast as a supposed mass uprising, then as a Western operation against Ukraine’s leadership. This interpretation reinforces the perception in Russia that Ukraine is on the brink of collapse and bolsters the argument for continuing the war, on the grounds that the leadership in Kyiv is increasingly weakened and vulnerable.
CONTEXT: Russian attacks in September and October this year damaged or destroyed data centres and telecommunications infrastructure in Kyiv. Meanwhile, public discontent in Ukraine over mobilisation, corruption and the way some institutions operate formed the backdrop to Oleksandr Todorov’s calls for protests. Pro-Kremlin propaganda conflates these two developments, portraying the consequences of Russian attacks and signs of protest as evidence of a supposed attempt by the authorities to prevent an uprising against Zelensky.
Russian propaganda is changing the meaning it has attached to the term “Maidan” for years. The 2013–2014 Revolution of Dignity was consistently portrayed as a coup organised and financed by the West, while “Maidan” became synonymous in pro-Kremlin discourse with chaos, destabilisation and an unconstitutional change of government. Now, however, the prospect of a “new Maidan” serves a purpose: protests against Zelensky are amplified and portrayed as signs of a popular uprising. A term previously used to discredit Ukrainian protests is thus embraced when it can fuel the narrative of a weakening leadership in Kyiv.
