THE IDENTITY-FORMATIVE FUNCTION OF RELIGIOUS SYMBOLS IN THE RUSSO-UKRAINIAN CONFLICT

The role of religious and para-religious symbols in shaping collective identities within contemporary conflicts, with particular reference to the Russo-Ukrainian war. Through a historical and cultural analysis, it highlights how Orthodoxy—revived with force after the dissolution of the USSR—has become a central element of the Russian political model and a tool for legitimizing power and military action. In the context of war, confessional, patriotic, and secularized symbols acquire propagandistic and motivational functions, reinforcing the “us versus them” dichotomy. From the “Z” marking on Russian tanks to militarized icons such as “St. Javelin,” symbolism becomes an identity-building and justificatory weapon, losing its original pacifying vocation in a broader transformation of the sacred into an instrument of conflict and division.