The Insider: French radio station NRJ speaks in occupied Donetsk, runs Russian army ads

The French broadcasting group NRJ launched a radio station in occupied Donetsk in January 2024, streaming pop music interspersed with propaganda, reports The Insider.

According to the media outlet, the commercials run by the group include calls to enlist in the Russian army — “Join your own” (“Prisoedinyaysya k SVOim”) — followed by a URL and a hotline number one can use to sign up.

The international brand NRJ (ENERGY) is owned by the French company NRJ Group, which operates radio stations worldwide, both directly and through licensing agreements. In Russia, the brand is licensed to GPM Radio — a subsidiary of Gazprom-Media Holding.

NRJ also broadcasts in Ukraine, where the franchise rights are held by Kyiv-based media group Evolutions. However, Ukraine is notably absent from NRJ Group’s international broadcasting map. Between late 2020 and early 2021, LLC “Energiya” (now GPM Radio) signed a licensing agreement with France’s NRJ Group worth €1.25 million, valid through Dec. 31, 2025. Under the contract, annual lump-sum payments are required.

In January 2024, NRJ installed a 1 kW transmitter in occupied Donetsk, enabling broadcasts with a range of 30–50 kilometers.

The media outlet reports that NRJ has not been sanctioned and is freely available in the rest of Ukraine as well.

In July 2024, the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) launched the propagandistic "Orthodox radio" Vera ("Faith") in the occupied Melitopol (Zaporizhzhia oblast).