Dugin, Surkov, Rykov - the Trio at the Head of the Trojan Horse
A new opening to this epic saga starts at the Olgino Troll farm in St Petersberg circa 2012
As I said in a previous post, this story doesn’t really begin with Ambassador Yakovenko’s speech on Cape Idokapas, celebrating bringing Britain to its knees through Brexit, but much earlier.
In an imaginary but plausible scenario, I have the key architects of Novorossiya - ‘New Russia’ - and its hybrid techniques of information and non-linear warfare gathered at Evgeny Prigozhin’s Internet Research Agency as it is just switching over from domestic to foreign interventions.
For those who don’t know the key figures: Alexander Dugin Putin’s ‘brain’: Vladislav Surkov his chief technologist and post-modern theorist, and Konstantin Rykov his “internet warlord”, I will put additional links under the text.
Besides the history, the setting of the troll farm, and the important contributions of the three speakers - Putin’s philosopher, magician, and engineer - the main inspiration here is the second book of Milton’s Paradise Lost in which the fallen angels, condemned to burn in everlasting penal fire, plot revenge by corrupting Adam and Eve.
So while the format comes partly from the speeches of Moloch, Beelzebub and Belial in the bowels of hell, the context matters too. Russia, by the time Putin took power in 1999, was in some kind of hell. It was bankrupt, dangerous, corrupt, and frenetic.
As Svetlana Alexeivitch depicts so brilliantly in her oral history novel Second Hand Time, Russians could barely adjust to the sudden loss of the Soviet state - not only territories like Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Ukraine - but the catastrophic rupture of an imperial myth that had made them one of the only two superpowers, given them nuclear weapons, Sputnik, countless now dubious Olympic medals and the electrification of industry.
That’s the context that led to the rise of Putin’s grip on the Russian mind.
This is the first bit of the meeting of the three men. More from Dugin on Russia’s spiritual greatness and the apocalyptic battle with the West will follow, including his plan set out in 1997 to disrupt the EU by getting Britain to leave it, and undermining the NATO alliance. Meanwhile, Rykov’s role in getting Trump to Moscow, and funding Marine Le Pen, plus his claims about using ‘scientists in Cambridge’ to psychometrically target American voters after this meeting will blow your mind.
Enjoy. Comments always welcome. I’ve already rewritten my prologue a bit, and this too will evolve.
Book One: The Troll Farm
They had passed like ghosts through the new offices, Four stories high, clad in stainless steel and glass, In the Olgino suburb of St Petersburg. It was past midnight for their secrecy, But as they walked toward the lifts, silently, Already students from the University Blinked at their flickering flat computer screens Checking out their scripts and avatars. Though Most Russian internet sites were asleep, It was still mid-evening in Great Britain, The Mail Online comment section fit to troll With stories of imminent Sharia law. In California was a bright breezy morning As retired Americans were logged onto Facebook To read horrid tales of migrants and black crime. These were early days, Evgeny Prigozhin, Putin’s famous caterer, deniable asset, Was ordering his mercenary legions To Syria and Chad, but had yet to hire Hundreds of English language students As his digital warriors online. But that was Coming soon. Fifty million dollars to spend On virtual hybrid warfare against the West - Cheaper but more effective than one fast jet - But for now, we follow the three men up: One bearded and grey, the other blond, baby-faced, The third, dark-haired, enigmatic, sharp, As they arrive at a penthouse private suite, With views over the Neva and the city. It looked like any corporate headquarters, Ten years ago, except for the portraits of President Putin, Marine Le Pen, and Donald Trump Which had been commissioned the month before. That gallery told it all. The big pivot After Pussy Riot arrested and the real Riot police doing the rest — Russia was tamed, By a new apparatus - a panoply Of press, TV, radio, and internet, Transformed by these new apparatchiks into An illusion of pluralism and free speech, A simulacra or spectacle of fake news, Both Chaos and Old Night tightly controlled. A managed democracy worked so well at home, Could it also work abroad? That was the Challenge facing these three thinkers, The philosopher Alexander Dugin, Vladislav Surkov, the state magician, And internet guru, Konstantin Rykov. All three could lay claim to Stalin’s description As engineers of human souls, but in fact The meeting didn’t feel momentous - only awkward - Surkov looking at Peter’s distant domes, Dugin refusing vodka, while curly-haired Rykov, like some wasted would-be adonis Sits on the boardroom table swinging his legs Checking his Blackberry for messages. Dugin glares at him. Surkov raises his hand And approaches the whiteboard but does not write. “Think of the narratives of the Wild West, For over a century, when we were kids, The films we watched, the scenarios we played, Stagecoaches, teepees, toy guns, headdresses, Creating an inverted reality In which Indians pillaged, raped, scalped Innocent Americans, who fought back Against savage barbarians to reclaim A settled land of peace and lawfulness. We all played along, in our games and dreams Children joyfully rehearsing genocide. We thought we were the good guys, and justly killed In the name of Uncle Sam. The question is Not whether right or wrong - we are so beyond - But how did America get away with it? That’s what I have been studying all these years The magic of hyper-reality that Wraps atrocity up as a Christmas gift, Plays Empire daily on our TV sets, And crowns it all with a fake cowboy hat. “Imagine German children, after the war, Sold models of Auschwitz, gas chambers to make, Einsatz commando model figures to place Across the killing fields of central Europe. Such a thing would be unthinkable except This is how popular culture began a century ago, Mass media justifying massacres. Hitler loved characters like Buffalo Bill And cowboy tales inspired his lebensraum. Why couldn’t he do the Wild West in the East? Had he won, and the Third Reich prevailed, We might have spent childhood watching TV shows About the heroic SS men battling with The Barbarian Jews of Odessa and Minsk, Or stabbed in the back by treacherous Slavs. It seems impossible when you think of it — But I’ve long been thinking the impossible — About the power of stories to compel A different and vindicating history. How to set the stage, edit, and reframe So the actuality, like white settlers Who extirpated native Americans, With railroads, rifles, knives, infected blankets Can be reversed. Victors recast as victims. Usurpers dressed up as liberators. See how it works. The costume. The dramatics. Turning the myth of mass reenactment Into ritual. We cannot motivate folk To do each other ill, only in the name of good. No one marches under the banner of evil, Unless they have dress rehearsals first. No one will fight for an ideal or an idol Until repetition has made it really real. “This way, for a century, America Has projected its ideology on the world. We have been blind, supplicant, oblivious, Lost these media battles on every front, Retreating under the barrage of Chewing gum, blue jeans, Coke, and rock and roll. While it happened, we didn’t really get it. By the time we got it, it was too late to act. Then the Berlin Wall fell and we surrendered Prostrate at the altar of the dollar. But not for much longer, now is our moment, The twenty-first century is still up for grabs. What our myth is, you can tell us, Sasha. And for you Kostya my only question is, What technologies can we now weaponise?” Rykov grinned. “Fuck yeah. Trash Team America” But Dugin grimaced and stroked his long beard. “I don’t like this language, Vladik, and I loathe The technology here on show. But while I fear It is capitulation even to use these terms, Unless ironically. All you say is true. We must Learn from our great enemy - the West. And in The final battle we must use every tool, No matter how crude and repulsive they are…
More from Dugin and Rykov coming up next…. and then Sochi, the Maidan, and war
MEANWHILE MENTAL HEALTH BREAK
Background reading after this picture of black swans
Some background reading:
Dugin’s Philosophical-Geopolitical Plan: Key Elements
1. Brexit as a Victory Against the EU
The EU, for Dugin, is not a neutral economic bloc but “a tool of Atlanticist liberal ideology” — an instrument of US-led globalism.
Brexit represents the first rupture in the EU’s integrative project.
“The UK has reasserted its sovereignty, and struck a blow to the liberal globalist elite.”
— Dugin on Brexit, Katehon.com, 2016
Dugin sees “sovereigntist nationalism” (in Hungary, France, etc.) as allies of Russia’s civilisational cause.
2. The Threat of the EU
The EU promotes “universal human rights, open borders, individualism” — all antithetical to Dugin’s Traditionalist vision.
He views Brussels as an “anti-Eurasian” force, subjugating national cultures to postmodern bureaucratic nihilism.
“The European Union is the secular eschaton of liberalism. It is Babel.”
He calls for a Europe of nations allied with Russia — not the EU, but a “Holy Europe” grounded in Christian values and sovereignty.
3. Destruction of NATO
NATO is Dugin’s primary geopolitical enemy: an instrument of American control and a metaphysical agent of liberal globalism.
He calls for:
Undermining Atlantic unity via disinformation, political destabilisation, and insurgent movements.
Supporting Eurosceptic, far-right, or far-left parties in NATO member states.
Strategic alignment with anti-Western regimes (e.g. Iran, China, Syria).
“NATO must be destroyed. It is the sword of the Antichrist.”
This call is not metaphorical — he means ontological and political war to collapse the alliance.
Vladislav Surkov
1. On Truth and Reality
“There is no need to fight for the truth. Just make it irrelevant.”
“The most effective political technology is to create a reality and then act within it.”
“We don’t need to explain ourselves. Our very unpredictability is our advantage.”
“There’s no need to censor the truth if you can make it look absurd.”
“We’ll flood the media with so many versions of events that no one will be able to tell what’s real anymore.”
2. On Democracy and Power
“The imitation of democracy is itself a kind of democracy.”
“Sovereign democracy is democracy that suits Russia. All democracies are sovereign, or they are not democracies.”
“The Russian state will last a long time. The people believe in its power more than they believe in truth.”
“We don’t have an ideology. We have a method.”
“Dynamic conservatism: constant change that preserves power.”
3. On Media and Narrative Control
“The audience must never understand the whole plot.”
“Politics is no longer about truth. It’s about controlling what people see.”
“We tell different stories to different people, and they all believe they’ve seen the whole picture.”
“In the postmodern world, control the illusion, and you control the game.”
4. On Protest and Opposition
“Protest is part of the system. It’s safer that way.”
“We created multiple parties, and then we created the opposition to them. That way, everyone gets to play.”
“Let them shout in the streets. We will control the cameras.”
5. On War and Geopolitics
“In this type of war, no one understands what is happening. And that’s exactly the point.”
“Russia is playing with the West’s minds. And they don’t know how to play back.”
“The West has grown bored with its own story. We will write a new one.”
“We create realities. Then you react to them. Then we create new ones. You can’t keep up.”
6. On Russia’s Identity
“Deep Russia, the real Russia, produces its own ideas and refuses to outsource its future.”
“Russia is the only postmodern country. We no longer pretend that politics is real.”
Konstantin Rykov
Surkov and Rykov: Timeline of Influence (2004–2014)
(With visible source URLs for clean copy-paste into Substack)
2004 — Orange Revolution in Ukraine
Surkov: Advised the Kremlin on framing the protests as a Western-backed colour revolution. He positioned them as a threat to Russian civilisation.
Source: https://carnegieendowment.org/2019/02/20/russia-s-new-ideology-of-the-russian-world-pub-78473Rykov: Developed pro-Kremlin blogs and early digital media to shape the narrative in Ukraine and the wider Russian-speaking internet.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/mar/06/vladislav-surkov-russia-spin-doctor
2006 — “Sovereign Democracy” Doctrine Launched
Surkov: Coined the concept of sovereign democracy — a democracy that “suits Russia” — legitimising authoritarian control within a democratic façade.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/31/world/europe/31russia.htmlRykov: Created spoof media and online satire to discredit Western democratic narratives.
Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/kremlin-propagandist-konstantin-rykov/28148493.html
2007 — Duma Elections and Party Control
Surkov: Oversaw the orchestration of fake opposition parties to simulate pluralism while keeping control centralized.
Source: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/surkov-as-the-author-of-putins-political-system/Rykov: Deployed coordinated pro-government messaging across LiveJournal and early Russian social networks.
Source: https://globalvoices.org/2011/12/08/russia-livejournal-vs-the-duma/
2008 — Russia–Georgia War
Surkov: Helped frame the invasion of Georgia as a defensive move against NATO encroachment, aligning with civilisational rhetoric.
Source: https://foreignpolicy.com/2014/10/23/the-brain-of-the-kremlin/Rykov: Used anonymous blogs and fake media to delegitimise Georgian leaders and flood the Russian infosphere with disinformation.
Source: https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/11/russia-election-facebook/546107/
2011 — Anti-Putin Protests in Moscow
Surkov: Scripted the official media response, branding protesters as “foreign agents” and “CIA-backed liberals.”
Source: https://carnegie.ru/commentary/48911Rykov: Led troll campaigns and deployed online operatives to harass protest leaders and undermine credibility.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-29406075
2012 — Putin’s Return to Presidency
Surkov: Introduced the phrase “dynamic conservatism” to justify long-term rule under a changing exterior.
Source: https://www.ft.com/content/eac73e5a-5e41-11e9-9dde-7aedca0a081aRykov: Ran meme campaigns and digital satire celebrating Putin as the protector of Russia’s destiny.
Source: https://medium.com/dfrlab/how-russia-used-memes-and-memes-used-russia-1f3c11c76860
2013 — Sochi Olympics Build-Up
Surkov: Framed the Olympics as a civilisational triumph — proof of Russia’s renewal and global importance.
Source: https://carnegieeurope.eu/strategiceurope/54402Rykov: Produced viral content and meme contests glorifying Russia’s success on platforms like VK and YouTube.
Source: https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/maxseddon/inside-the-kremlins-online-propaganda-arm
2014 — Crimea Annexation and Ukraine Destabilisation
Surkov: Became a key architect of the “Novorossiya” ideology — positioning Crimea as a sacred part of the “Russian world.”
Source: https://foreignpolicy.com/2014/05/09/the-ghost-of-novorossiya/Rykov: Activated botnets, nationalist influencers, and fake news sites to flood social media with pro-Kremlin narratives.
Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/04/07/how-putins-internet-czar-blocks-access-to-the-web/
For information on his role in the 2016 US Presidential Elections, the best sources are
Scott Steadman
Thomas A Fine
1. “Tsargrad TV: The Fox News of Russia”
How good is this!!! Thank you, Peter.