The Putin regime has leaned heavily on propaganda to rally support for its war in Ukraine. In doing so, it has come to rely on military bloggers to spread its message and back its efforts. Milbloggers also have become an indispensable tool for Western governments, think tanks, and media to track the Russian war effort. But the relationship between Putin and milbloggers illustrates the complexities of social media in an authoritarian state. Many milbloggers are ultra-nationalists with deep ties to the Russian military and intelligence agencies.

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Persons: Putin, Vladimir Putin's, —, Donald Jensen, Angel Howard, Milblogs, aren't, Milbloggers, DOMINIQUE FAGET, It's, Ramzan Kadyrov, milbloggers, Jensen, Howard, Igor Girkin, Girkin, Andrey Kurshin, Maxim Shemetov, Russia's, Michael Peck Organizations: Service, Kyiv Independent, Getty, REUTERS, Putin's, Kremlin, Defense, Foreign Policy, Twitter, LinkedIn Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Kyiv, Russian, Makiivka, Donetsk, AFP, British, Ukrainian, Mariupol, Moscow, Russia, Forbes