The Office of the Prosecutor General is providing procedural guidance in investigations concerning Russia’s information aggression as part of its war against Ukraine. This refers not only to individual propaganda statements or publications, but to a coordinated state mechanism that prepares Russian society for war, justifies the occupation of Ukrainian territories, mobilization, war crimes, and attempts to destroy Ukrainian identity.
One of the results of this work is the conviction of Vladimir Medinsky and Anatoly Torkunov, editors of the Russian 11th-grade history textbook “History. History of Russia. 1945 – early 21st century,” published in Russia in 2023.
The Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv sentenced each of them to 10 years in prison with confiscation of property.
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According to the investigation, this textbook became one of the tools of Russia’s information policy in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. Its content includes public calls to change Ukraine’s borders and state territory, justifies Russia’s armed aggression and temporary occupation of Ukrainian lands, and forms a distorted, ideologically biased perception of modern historical events among students.
Russia places special focus on children — one of the most vulnerable groups in the occupied territories. Through educational materials, they are exposed to narratives about so-called “brotherly peoples,” denial of Ukraine’s statehood, framing the war as “liberation” through the so-called “special military operation,” and the Russian version of the war against Ukraine.
Since September 1, 2023, the textbook has been used in the educational process in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine — in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson regions, and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. It has also been distributed within Russia.
Prosecutors of the Office of the Prosecutor General proved Medinsky and Torkunov guilty in court under Part 2 of Article 110 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (encroachment on territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine), as well as Part 3 of Article 436-2 (justification, recognition as lawful, and glorification of Russia’s armed aggression against Ukraine).
The pre-trial investigation was conducted by the Main Investigation Department of the Security Service of Ukraine under the procedural guidance of the Prosecutor General’s Office.
This verdict is only part of a broader effort by Ukrainian law enforcement to counter Russia’s information aggression. Investigations are ongoing.
