The Ukrainian ‘information shield’. Infrastructuring digital sovereignty practices

From the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war in 2014, the Ukrainian digital space has become the target of multiple attacks from Russia. In Ukraine these attacks, particularly informational ones, led to a transformation of the concept of informational sovereignty. The protection of the information space became a priority for guaranteeing the integrity of the territory, and the authorities implemented infrastructure policies to protect information. They did so primarily through the logical infrastructures of the network, which triggered heated debate among and between various public and private players. Based on an analysis of doctrinal, academic and media sources, as well as interviews, this article explores the evolution of digital sovereignty in Ukraine along with its application. By analysing how logical infrastructure becomes a place for exercising and challenging state power, the article contributes to an understanding of the specific dynamics of governance and territorialization of infrastructure in a context of existential war.