Kreowanie językowego obrazu Ukrainy w wybranych radzieckich tekstach propagandowych (po 1945 r.) i oficjalnych rosyjskich materiałach rządowych (2021–2022 r.)

The article analyzes the process of constructing a linguistic representation of Ukraine and Ukrainians in selected Soviet and contemporary Russian propaganda texts. The author compares methods of linguistic manipulation in light of the concept of cognitive warfare and Grażyna Habrajska’s definition of propaganda. It is assumed that both sets of sources, despite the significant temporal distance and divergent political contexts, employ similar narrative mechanisms and propaganda constructs, such as the notions of “brotherhood,” ethnic and linguistic unity between Russians and Ukrainians, the myth of the Pereiaslav Agreement, and the alleged lack of genuine statehood of Ukraine. The analysis is based on Soviet monographs on the history of Ukraine as well as on articles and speeches by President Vladimir Putin. The author argues that these contemporary sources constituted an ideological contribution to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The timeliness and relevance of this study stem from the observation that imperial rhetoric and linguistically encoded imperial perspectives seem to be currently experiencing a revival.