October 18, 2024, the VII Kharkiv Security Forum “Civilian Ukrainians: Challenges and Resilience in the Conditions of Terrorist War” was held in Kharkiv. The forum was organized by the Maidan Monitoring Information Center and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation with the support of the Humanitarian Coordination Center.

We offer you recommendations based on the results of the forum.

Acoustic Terror

Acoustic terror is a component of the aggressive, terrorist war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, along with the “projection syndrome” – the projection in the human consciousness of the sounds of everyday life onto the “sounds of war.”

Acoustic Terror as a Feature of the Russian-Ukrainian War. Executive summary

Acoustic terror leads to anxiety disorders, generalized anxiety disorders, and can cause post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Nowhere in the world and never in history have there been so many civilians and children suffering from PTSD as in Ukraine now.

There are no known methods of working with the civilian population and children who suffer from PTSD and who are retraumatized due to shelling and acoustic terror. There are also no modern methods for assessing the impact of acoustic shocks, which civilians are constantly exposed to during shelling of Ukraine.

There are levels and volumes of sound which are not acceptable, those that a person can not endure without harm to health. To improve security, it is necessary to strive for the maximum reduction of the level and volume of noise surrounding people, so that people can distinguish a military threat from other sounds – industrial, transport, construction, etc.

We, experts of the forum, believe that in order to overcome the impact of acoustic terror, the main tasks of authorities, civil society and citizens themselves are:

Support for victims of acoustic terror in order to reduce the impact of “projection syndrome” on the health and quality of life of people in Ukraine.

A significant reduction in the number and volume of sounds not related to military actions in public space, which can cause the “projection syndrome” in victims of acoustic terror.

Support for victims of acoustic terror

For this purpose, we offer to:

develop an educational campaign to overcome the Soviet fear of punitive psychiatry to encourage voluntary medical examination of victims of acoustic terror in order to provide ongoing appropriate psychological and, if necessary, psychiatric care;

develop practices and trainings to reduce the impact of acoustic terror for different age, social, and vulnerable groups, in particular, we propose to develop a program to teach civilians to distinguish the “sounds of war” from other sounds;

create self-help groups for victims of acoustic terror with the mandatory participation of qualified health professionals (Maidan Monitoring Information Center has experience in creating such groups – informational self-help);

support professional medical research to develop medical protocols to clearly define the condition of a person who has survived an acoustic shock.

Reducing the number and volume of sounds not related to military operations

For this purpose, we offer to:

launch a broad and permanent educational campaign to significantly reduce the number and volume of sounds in public space, which can fuel the “projection syndrome” in victims of acoustic terror,

develop and implement early warning protocols for non-military actions that may be accompanied by loud sounds that can fuel the “projection syndrome”;

launch a campaign to encourage Ukrainian residents to reduce the number, and most importantly, the volume, of sounds that resemble the “sounds of war”;

regulate air alarm signals.

Proving the crime of acoustic terror

Acoustic terror as a crime can be proven within the framework of the existing legislation of Ukraine, in particular, Article 258 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, and citizens can be involved in documenting it.

Acoustic night terrors can also qualify as insomnia torture, requiring professional sleep disorder studies.

The involvement of citizens to help the Ukrainian investigation in documenting the crimes of the Russian Federation is already possible. There are success stories of such cooperation in the Kharkiv region, in particular, the “Maidan Monitoring” Information Center prepared a training course “How to collect digital evidence of war crimes of the Russian Federation”.

Nuclear terrorism

Nuclear terrorism is a unique characteristic of the war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, it is the first war with the use of nuclear terrorism.

We suggest advocating the inclusion of the crimes “nuclear terrorism” and “attempted nuclear terrorism” in Ukrainian and international legislation.

It is necessary to create reliable methods and protocols for documenting and proving the crimes of “nuclear terrorism” and “attempted nuclear terrorism.”

Enemy studies

In contrast to the Russian Federation, where the study of Ukraine has been systematic, permanent, and thorough for an extensive period, the systematic study of the aggressor state, the Russian Federation, remains absent in Ukraine.

Dr. Yulia Laputina, a Psychology Ph.D. and Major General serving as Officer for Special Assignments of the Office of the Head of the Security Service of Ukraine, recommends the inclusion of proficient experts from both the law enforcement sector and civil society in the enemy studies.