Special military operation

This article is about the term used by the Russian government. For special military activities in general, see Special operations.
"СВО" redirects here. Not to be confused with the non-Cyrillic CBO.

"Special military operation" (also "special operation", and abbreviated as "SMO" or "SVO", or Russian: спецопера́ция, romanized: spetsoperatsiya, Ukrainian: спецопера́ція) is the official term used by the Russian government to describe the Russo-Ukrainian war. It is widely considered a euphemism intended to minimize the invasion and obfuscate the war's original objective of annexing all Russophone regions of Ukraine. Russia bans the use of the terms "war" or "invasion" in referring to its invasion of Ukraine, as well as discussion of the censorship itself.

The expression appears prominently in the public address by President of Russia Vladimir Putin, released on 24 February 2022.

The term "special military operation" has been used in Ukrainian media in specific contexts, generally in scare quotes, to mock or criticize the Russian invasion.


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