FREEДОМ in February: geopolitical track at the center of attention of the international audience

17.03.2026, 22:57 uatv.ua

In February, FREEDOM viewers paid high attention to materials about the efforts of Ukraine and its partners for a just end to the war, successful operations of the Ukrainian Defense Forces, special broadcasts for the fourth anniversary of the full-scale invasion and the Day of Resistance to the Occupation of Crimea. The team of the SE “MPIU” launched a free FREEDOM mobile application for Android and iOS, which has already received over 250 thousand visits.

During the month, content of the FREEDOM TV channel on foreign broadcasting platforms across all social networks and messengers (YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Telegram, X, WhatsApp) gathered 45.7 million views*, including: 21.1 million — foreign broadcasting YouTube channels**, 9.5 million — Facebook, 9.4 million — Telegram. In February, the activity of the FREEDOM audience on TikTok increased — 5.1 million views: Belarus — 25%, Russia — 21%, Kazakhstan — 20.5%. Another 600 thousand views on TikTok were received by FREEDOM.KAVKAZ. In total, on the digital platforms of SE “MPIU” and partners, FREEDOM content views for the month amounted to 115.7 million ** (for the entire period — 14.96 billion).

In February, FREEDOM viewers paid high attention to materials about the efforts of Ukraine and partners to achieve a just peace, security guarantees, Russia’s unwillingness for real negotiations, resonant comments and statements by Volodymyr Zelensky regarding proposals of territorial concessions to the aggressor and the real intentions and goals of the Russians. In particular, the statement of the President of Ukraine during the Munich Security Conference that Ukraine will not voluntarily leave Donbas received over 490 thousand views: 88.9% — from abroad, of which 35.1% from Russia and 8% from Kazakhstan. The words of NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte that Russians are not winning in Ukraine, but advancing at the speed of a garden snail, also became resonant: over 320 thousand views, 30% — from Russia.

The audience’s attention was also drawn to the speech in Munich by the new Minister of Defense of Ukraine Mykhailo Fedorov, who thanked NATO and allies for their support and confirmed Ukraine’s readiness to continue resisting Russian aggression: 185 thousand views, 87% — international audience, 30% — from Russia. In total, content about the Munich Security Conference published on FREEDOM digital platforms received over 1.3 million views*.

On the eve of negotiations in Abu Dhabi, audience interest was drawn to the visit of Mark Rutte to Kyiv, which took place against the backdrop of another Russian missile attack. During a joint press conference, Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russia violated agreements on a temporary cessation of shelling and ignored US negotiation efforts. At the same time, the NATO Secretary General emphasized Ukraine’s readiness for a just peace settlement and noted that the latest Russian attacks are a bad signal regarding compliance with agreements. In total, materials about this visit on FREEDOM platforms were viewed 500 thousand times, 90% of views — from abroad, 38% — from Russia.

Among the international Russian-speaking audience, interest traditionally remained high in materials about operations of the Ukrainian Defense Forces and weapons of the Ukrainian army — over 90% of viewers from abroad. Popular in February were news about successful strikes with long-range “Flamingo” missiles on facilities on Russian territory, destruction of the “TOR” air defense system, agreements with European partners on the supply of military aircraft, and prospects for the revival of civil aviation. A comment by Volodymyr Zelensky on the effectiveness and prospects of increasing “Flamingo” production also received 250 thousand views on TikTok. Exclusive footage of fighters of the Main Intelligence Directorate unit “Artan,” who recaptured key enemy positions near Stepnohirsk in the Zaporizhzhia direction, was viewed over 360 thousand times, a quarter of the audience — from Russia.

Another popular February video — news about how Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, using aerial reconnaissance, penetrated the rear of the Russian army, planted explosives, and stopped the advance of the invaders in the North Slobozhansky direction: over 230 thousand views, of which 80% of the audience from abroad, including 23% — from Russia, 11% — from Kazakhstan.

In February, the FREEDOM editorial team prepared thematic special broadcasts for the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the Day of Resistance to the Occupation of Crimea. On February 24, special projects and premieres aired on FREEDOM — exclusive interviews, live connections from Brussels, Kyiv and regions, reports from the front line, stories of resilience, and documentaries. The address of the President of Ukraine, in which Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized that Ukrainians chose not capitulation but defense of their country, was most viewed in Russia — 35.8%, Kazakhstan — 10.5%, Uzbekistan — 8%; overall international audience — 93.5%. Views were also high for the address of Prince Harry about the dignity and resilience of Ukrainians, who showed the world true endurance.

Over 170 thousand views were received by a fragment of Volodymyr Zelensky’s interview for AFP, in which he said that the country continues to live and work and that in four years Russia has not managed to drive Ukrainians into a bunker: 88% — from abroad, 33% — from Russia. The highest YouTube views in February were collected by a short video about the resistance of Ukrainians in Crimea to Russian occupation: a total of 1.3 million views — over 790 thousand on FREEDOM.LIVE and over 540 thousand on FREEDOM, 94.4% — from abroad, including 29.3% — from Uzbekistan, 15.8% — from Russia.

FREEDOM.KAVKAZ projects dedicated to the resistance of the region’s peoples to the imperial ambitions of the Kremlin and the preservation of historical memory received 4.6 million views in February: 3.6 million views on YouTube, 600 thousand — on TikTok. Over 90% of views — international audience. Leading cities by views — Moscow, Tashkent, Saint Petersburg, Almaty, Grozny, and Dushanbe. The highest views were for the stream dedicated to the anniversary of the destruction by Russian troops of the palace of Dzhokhar Dudayev in Grozny, which is a symbol of Chechen statehood and freedom. The live video was watched by 290 thousand viewers, over 30% of whom were from Russia. The stream featuring a fighter of the Chechen battalion named after Sheikh Mansur, Abu Yunus, who said he chose to defend Ukraine because of religious freedom and support for Muslims, was watched live by more than 120 thousand viewers, 35% — from Russia.

In February, SE “MPIU” launched a free FREEDOM mobile application for Android and iOS with access to live broadcasting and a content library. The application has already received over 250 thousand visits, including from Russia, the United Kingdom, Turkey, the Netherlands, and the USA. Due to increased internet restrictions in Russia, the FREEDOM editorial team also conducted another information campaign on how to access the channel’s content in a country with restricted internet.

* Total views on all own digital platforms of SE “MPIU”: YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Telegram, X, WhatsApp. Data sources: analytics tools of digital platforms; Google Analytics; YouTube Studio of FREEDOM channels. Period: February 2026.

** Five YouTube channels under the FREEDOM brand: FREEDOM, FREEDOM.LIVE, FREEDOM.DOC, FREEDOM.OPINIONS, FREEDOM.KAVKAZ.

*** Total metrics across all digital platforms (YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Telegram) of SE “MPIU” and partner platforms — Ukrainian media groups publishing content under the FREEDOM brand. Data sources: analytics tools; Google Analytics; YouTube Studio. Period: February 2026. Entire period — 10.03.2022 — 28.02.2026.

**** Refers to the total number of views of videos of this topic on FREEDOM digital platforms in social networks YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Telegram, X, WhatsApp.

ABOUT FREEDOM

FREEДОМ is a Ukrainian state international broadcasting channel aimed at Russian-speaking audiences outside Ukraine. The broadcast channel is transmitted via satellite, cable, DTH, IPTV networks of national operators, and OTT platforms. Digitally, it is represented on 15 internet platforms, including YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Telegram, X, WhatsApp, and web. FREEДОМ is part of the state enterprise “International Broadcasting Multimedia Platform of Ukraine” (IBMPU). IBMPU is a resilient, multi-level institution within the state’s information security system, comprising ten media brands — FREEДОМ, “Dim“, UATV.English, UATV.Arabic, UATV.Español, The Gaze, UATV.Português, UATV.Deutsch, UATV.Türkçe, UATV po polsku — producing and broadcasting content in nine languages: Ukrainian, English, Russian, Arabic, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese, German, and Turkish.