Veyshnoria: A Fake Country in the Midst of Real Information Warfare

As a humorous response to the threat of the Russian occupation of Belarus during the joint military exercise of September 2017, civic activists created the fictional Republic of Veyshnoria. This meme soon obtained all the attributes of a micro-nation, including numerous virtual citizens, serving to critique the autocratic government of Belarus and creating a platform for alternative nation-building. Via humor and fake news, fictional Veyshnoria is becoming increasingly instrumental in the realm of information and ideological warfare.