The Russian Federation prepares a massive fake to portray the Ukrainian counteroffensive as a “failure”

Russians have prepared fake videos and photos to show an unreliable picture of the battlefield. They appeared as a salvo on multiple Telegram-channels.

The Russian army is preparing a large-scale information and psychological operation (military term “PsyOp”) with the purpose  to demoralize the Ukrainians. Its fake narrative is the “failure” of the Ukrainian “counteroffensive”. It seems the Russian ministry of defense has already announced the beginning of this operation.

The Ukrainian StratCom uncovered these plans and warned the Armed Forces of UKraine (AFU). StratCom says that Russia will begin to spread on social networks and Telegram channels the old photos and videos prepared and doctored beforehand that will show the “defeats” of the Ukrainian army. In particular, they will show damaged equipment, the dead, and the prisoners of war.

To mislead the public, the Russian army will make fake reports on the failed operations of the Ukrainian counteroffensive (when there are no such things).

“Russian propagandists will spread misleading information about the counteroffensive, its directions, and losses of the Ukrainian troops. Even if there’s no counteroffensive taking place,” says StratCom, a strategic communications department within the Ukrainian military.

StratCom reminds that the public should be guided in such matters solely by operational summaries of the AFU General Staff, as well as the reports by official representatives of the AFU.

The Russian Federation developed this PsyOp in a sophisticated and well-resourced manner to damage Ukraine’s relationships with its foreign partners

It’s useful to recall that in May 2023, the Russians also spread false information on Facebook and other social networks that the Ukrainian government had allegedly embezzled money allocated by foreign partners to support Ukraine. In particular, fake messages began circulating on May 7 on a page called “The newsr.” That PsyOp was also directed at Kyiv’s international partners with the aim to reduce support for the AFU. 

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