Denys Kolesnyk is a French geopolitical and information risk consultant based in Paris. He specialises in security and defence issues in Central and Eastern Europe, including Poland, Ukraine, and Russia. In particular he focuses on Information Warfare and influence operations.

He has worked at the NATO Liaison Office to Ukraine, with Effective Engagement Strategies, and as a consultant for numerous other entities. In 2022, he founded Info Ops France — an initiative aimed at improving the informational resilience of French society. Since mid-2023, Mr. Kolesnyk has supported ESN as an ad hoc FIMI / disinformation expert. He also currently serves as President of the MENA Research Center think-tank.

Mr. Kolesnyk holds a Master’s degree in International Relations from the Université Paris II Panthéon-Assas and is pursuing his PhD at the Conservatoire national des arts et métiers (CNAM), focusing on the issues of disinformation, social networks, media narratives, and their impact on public opinion.

He tweets at @denkolesnyk.

Certifications and Professional Training

• Novel Developments in Information Resilience and Cognitive Security — International Centre for Defence and Security (ICDS), 2022
• 360° Digital Sherlocks: OSINT and Digital Investigation — Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab), 2022
• NATO–EU Roundtable — European Atlantic Treaty Association (EATA), 2017
• New Security Leaders Programme — Casimir Pulaski Foundation, 2016
• NATO Beyond the Warsaw Summit: Adapting to the New Realities — Prague Security Studies Institute, 2016
• Security Policy Workshop — Defence Academy of the United Kingdom and Cranfield University, 2011

Selected Speaking Engagements and Contributions

• Speaker, Central and Eastern Europe Security Forum — Foundation Institute for Eastern Studies (Warsaw, 2025)
• Speaker, discussion on the implementation of strategic and defence reviews — Chatham House (London, 2025)
• Speaker, Young Security Conference (Munich, 2024)
• Speaker, conference on disinformation — National Information Resilience Cluster (Poland, 2023)
• Speaker, conference on hybrid threats — Centre for Strategic Analysis and Forecasting (Poland, 2023)