Handbook on the Role of Non-State Actors in Russian Hybrid Threats
Published by Hybrid Centre of Excellence
Russian Hybrid Threats
Russia's employment of non-state actors (NSA) is a staple of its approach to hybrid threat operations. This handbook provides an overarching assessment of Russia's approach to working with and through various NSAs across different operational domains, mapping both the empirical depth and breadth of the phenomenon. It establishes a much-needed baseline for understanding the logic behind Russia's use of NSAs and lays the groundwork for determining appropriate measures and countermeasures at a time when operations below and above the threshold of war are on the rise.
The handbook includes two chapters written by the Centre for Finance and Security (CFS) at RUSI Research Fellow Eliza Lockhart.
The first chapter examines how the Russian state leverages a network of economic and financial NSAs to generate revenue, maintain economic resilience under sanctions, and wield financial and political influence abroad.
The second chapter draws on the work of CFS Senior Associate Fellow Matthew Redhead to explain the challenges when trying to establish a clear chain of command between state and non-state actors.
