'The Special Demographic Operation': War and Demographic Anxiety in Russia.

• In Event: War, Demographics, and Militarization: Discursive Strategies and Socioeconomic Consequences of Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine

Abstract

The Russian government's 2022 invasion of Ukraine intensified longstanding demographic anxieties, reinforcing pro-natalist policies and traditionalist rhetoric as national security imperatives. In response, various state and para-state actors have pushed for “demographic mobilization,” implementing policies that restrict LGBTQ rights, discourage child-free lifestyles, and promote population growth through state incentives. Drawing on a quantitative and qualitative analysis of different types of sources, including collections of texts extracted from the websites of the State Duma, a selection of Russian nationalist writings, and media coverage of the demographic situation discussed by Russian newspapers, this project examines how wartime discourse and policies reshape public perceptions of demographic change. The findings of the paper contributes to extant literature by investigating the processes and practices that (re)shape domestic population trends in wartime.

Author

• Jules Sergei Fediunin, U of Oslo (Norway)