Russian hybrid warfare against Europe refers to alleged Russian efforts to influence, disrupt or destabilize European countries through a combination of conventional and unconventional methods while avoiding a direct large-scale military confrontation.

Hybrid warfare has no single universally accepted definition. It generally describes the coordinated use of different forms of conflict, which can include cyberwarfare, sabotage, disinformation, political influence, covert operations and other measures intended to make attribution difficult and reduce the risk of direct retaliation.

Russia has been accused of using such methods to create instability abroad. Reported examples include cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns, sabotage, unmarked or covert personnel and other operations designed to remain ambiguous or deniable. Reports of Russian hybrid activity increased after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Western governments and intelligence agencies have also alleged Russian involvement in sabotage operations across Europe, including arson, railway damage, vandalism, assassination plots and electronic interference such as GPS jamming. European officials have linked many of these incidents to efforts to pressure or destabilize countries supporting Ukraine. Russia has denied responsibility for such operations.

The concept overlaps with Russian theories of so-called new generation warfare, which emphasize information and psychological pressure, non-military influence and the use of indirect methods to weaken an opponent before or instead of relying on large-scale conventional force.

Because hybrid warfare deliberately combines overt and covert activity and often seeks to obscure responsibility, individual incidents can be difficult to attribute with certainty. The broader concept itself is also contested, with some scholars arguing that the term is too vague and can group together very different kinds of conflict.