Russian Fear Management: Between Hard and Soft Power in the Near Abroad – The Case of Poland
Russian Fear Management: Between Hard and Soft Power in the Near Abroad – The Case of Poland

Summary/Abstract: This article critically examines the Russian Federation’s international influence strategies, particularly toward Poland, through the lens of soft and hard power theory. It argues that while Russia formally employs tools associated with soft power, such as international media and cultural messaging, its practices are better understood as fear management – a hybrid strategy that blends psychological warfare, propaganda, and coercive disinformation. Rather than attracting admiration, Russian influence efforts manipulate public sentiment, destabilize democratic discourse, and erode institutional trust in target societies. The article challenges the applicability of Nye’s soft power framework to authoritarian regimes and proposes that Russia’s actions constitute a simulation of soft power aimed at disorientation rather than persuasion. The analysis demonstrates a rising trend in anti-Ukrainian sentiment, fueled by disinformation about migration, economic competition, and security threats. The War Fear Index (Resfutura, 2025a), an annual study on Polish media narratives since 2022, highlights the growing influence of Russian propaganda, a tool of destabilization in contemporary European states.

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