Russia has launched a new campaign in the Ukrainian segment of social networks: feeds have been flooded with calls and agitations to protest against the current government. With pompous slogans “against war and government”. We explain the mechanics of this operation. It is also worth noting that Russia has been trying to incite protests against the government sometimes, and sometimes against resistance to it, since 2015.
“Shall we gather at Maidan on October 3rd? This war is profitable for the government!”; “If we don’t come out to rallies, Ukrainians as a nation can be considered dead”; “Prepare tents and mats” — these are the types of posts that users of the Threads network have been inadvertently forced to observe recently.
Russians always carefully copy the scheme of organizing real protests. They try to repeat it in detail. But nothing comes of it. Because real general political protests in Ukraine arise when people see a threat to Ukraine, and this generates public dissatisfaction. Whereas the Russian technology works in the opposite way: first, an informational visibility of protest is created, and then people are persuaded that this protest already exists.
Who started it all?
Oleksandr Todorov — an Odessa journalist and, as he emphasizes, an ethnic Bulgarian. In 2006, he worked for the newspaper “Odessa-sport”.
He is one of those who contributed to the spread of the Russian myth about the “Odessa Khatyn”. In July 2014, he was featured in the European Parliament as part of a group initiated by then Latvian MP Tatyana Zhdanok, regarding whom the European Parliament launched an investigation due to suspicion of long-term cooperation with the FSB of Russia.
Then, together with other group members, he spoke about the tragedy in Odesa that occurred on May 2. Among others, there was the pro-Russian propagandist Halyna Zaporozhtseva, who talked about “cannibalism,” and Oleh Muzyka, who claimed the use of “chemical weapons,” although he emerged from the Trade Unions House completely unharmed.
At that time, speaking about the tragedy in the Trade Unions House, Todorov stated:
“I don’t want to scare you, but if radical measures are not taken now, our sad present will become your future. The seeds of ultra-nationalism that have sprouted in Ukraine today will soon bloom across Europe.”
He appeared in the media space again in October 2024 after 10 years of silence. This time with a story about his illegal mobilization. The story was simultaneously picked up by Russian propaganda and pro-Russian media, such as “Moskovsky Komsomolets,” “Gazeta.Ru,” “ANTIFASHIST,” “Podmoskovye Segodnya,” “Info24,” Z Telegram channels (including “Observer”), the website “Strana.ua,” and others.
This story did not spread in the Ukrainian media space.
Later, in January 2026, Todorov resurfaced in the Russian media field. Now, in an interview posing as a “simple soldier of the 41st Brigade,” he lamented the “deplorable” situation in the Armed Forces and the “bloodthirsty leaders” who allegedly are ready to fight to “the last Ukrainian.” Since then, Oleksandr Todorov has been presenting himself as a military member of the 41st Brigade.
The next time he appeared in the media space was with attempts to organize a protest.
First Attempt to Organize a Protest on September 10
Todorov first attempted to organize a protest on September 10. The demands on the authorities were very vague. Specifically, he promised to ask Volodymyr Zelenskyy, “how long he will keep mocking Ukraine” and “how much the air will cost.” In response to his calls, a mere… eight people showed up.
Disappointed with such “support,” Todorov recorded a video, in which he demonstratively declared that he “washes his hands of it”:
“I am ashamed to live in this country. (…) I am an ethnic Bulgarian, an Odessan, and I do not want to call myself Ukrainian, it just feels unpleasant to me.”
Todorov blamed the failure of the protest on everyone around. In his interpretation, all Ukrainians turned out to be “infantile,” “unable to fight,” and “doomed.” He concluded his speech with a pompous promise to delete his channel and never record videos again.
The lament about the infantilism of Ukrainians was also picked up by several Russian and pro-Russian bloggers. Among the well-known ones are Russian Sheikh Tamir and Anton Gura.
“I, you, we — all of Ukraine”
And although Todorov promised to delete his account and never record videos again, things did not go as planned.
On September 16, he created a separate account on Facebook. Here he appears as a cyborg — half-human, half-robot — in the profile picture. Meanwhile, his personal account, where he shared his interest in table tennis and Brussels, remains active.
He publishes his videos on Facebook, as well as on a YouTube channel created in September, which he began filling with content from September 11, and a Telegram channel, which he started populating from September 12.
In parallel, a chat was created on Telegram with regional branches for different cities in Ukraine. At the time of writing this article, it had over 2100 participants.
This time Todorov has a number of demands. Among them are ending the war (signing peace agreements) under any conditions, which is effectively a capitulation, opening the borders, which he presents as an “escape from a concentration camp,” immediate presidential elections, and the rejection of “external governance” — under this point about “independence” lies the typical Russian narrative that Ukraine supposedly lacks subjectivity and is not an independent state.
The points of his “program” resonate with Kremlin propaganda narratives and are too vague for a real protest, as they artificially encompass everything from foreign policy to the work of military medical commissions instead of solving specific problems.
The calculation is simple: everyone should find their trigger here — from fear of TCC to fatigue from the war, dissatisfaction with military medicine, and the desire for open borders. Essentially, it is classic populism based on the principle of “for all the good, against all the bad,” only with a pronounced Russian accent.
“Public Support”
Todorov’s media activity has been readily picked up by individuals with rather dubious reputations. In the Telegram channel “3 OCTOBER • TODOROV,” they sincerely thank bloggers whom we identify as systematic spreaders of destructive content on a regular basis within the framework of our monitoring of Russian disinformation in Ukraine.
This is TelegrammNe_Na_Chasi with a video about the first rally, a video calling to come on October 3 “There will be a rally against the green gang,” and another one. This also includes TikTok bloggers ALexus, Kraken, rapanapadre, Viktoria Chus, Nazar Diyan, Insider, Yevgenia Karimova (video).
“If on October 3 at least 15-20 thousand people do not come out across Ukraine and abroad, then (…) it means the people of Ukraine support Zelensky and his masters.”
However, the local support of pro-Russian bloggers does not compare to how actively Todorov and his rally calls are covered by Russian media. Leading Kremlin mouthpieces immediately joined the informational support, eagerly spreading materials about “the date of the new Maidan” and “the unveiled plot to assassinate Zelensky.”
Oleksandr Todorov was supported by the fugitive People’s Deputy Artem Dmytruk, who initially announced his rally on September 10, and later spread information that Todorov was detained by SBU officers on September 19.
Was Todorov detained?
On September 19, Todorov’s Telegram channel reported wonderful news: “Aleksandr is detained by the SBU following a call from the office of the Green Plague.” We found no official confirmation from law enforcement about Todorov’s detention.
Nevertheless, the Telegram channel continues to operate:
“Dear friends, do not panic, pray for Aleksandr and continue working! (…) And remember, Aleksandr asked not to become attached to his persona. Everything remains in effect, we’ll go out on the 3rd, come out carefully for a peaceful rally.”
After September 19, Oleksandr Todorov disappears from communication. His whereabouts are currently unknown. Serg, the administrator of Todorov’s chat, launched a flash mob:
“My proposal is for everyone to take a photo from a beautiful location with the abbreviation FUAZ (Free Ukraine Anti Zelensky) and post it on social media with the hashtag #FUAZ and #AlexTodd.”
The abbreviation FUAZ turned out to be another important element of this mosaic: the new “cyborg” account of Oleksandr Todorov on Network X is called FUAZ_UA (currently, the account is inactive). Under this abbreviation, we tried to find a profile on the Threads network. And we came across a rather revealing detail: the official location of the profile found there, FUAZ, is specified as the Russian Federation. Note that calls to go out on the “Maidan October 3” are being actively spread from this page.
Interesting detail regarding the construction “FU” (Fuck You): in network slang and hashtags, the FU part is a common abbreviation for “Fuck You.”
A chat called 03.10.2026 was also created in Telegram for “force support and protest security.” We managed to take a screenshot of a message that was quickly deleted from the channel.
On the “force support” channel itself, they advise gathering with “covered faces,” preferably in balaclavas. There are other recommendations too.
On September 21, following Todorov’s disappearance, a classic pro-Russian thesis about the third Maidan appears on his Telegram channel.
Russia has been constantly trying to incite protests in Ukraine, at least since 2015 (referring to “Maidan 2.0”), by converting any real societal pain—from tariffs and corruption to mobilization issues—into attempts to overthrow the government.
Russian propagandists have approached from different angles, deliberately working with various active groups.
Today, this work is carried out by networks of controlled bloggers. Artificial intelligence, which allows the massive generation of content for any provocation, significantly eases their work.
Russia’s goal is to redirect society’s exhaustion and pain away from resisting the external aggressor and towards self-destruction, paralyzing the country from within just as it fights for its existence.
