Russian propaganda telegram channels are spreading information that the Ukrainian Armed Forces could allegedly launch a full-scale offensive deep into Russian territory — into the Saratov, Oriol, Leningrad and Moscow regions — using Western weapons. In reporting this, the propagandists cite Mykhailo Podoliak, an adviser to the head of the Presidential Office.

However, Podoliak's words were manipulated. This was reported by the VoxCheck project. In an interview with the German media Die Welt, published on October 14, 2024, Mykhailo Podoliak did mention the listed Russian regions, but in a different context. The adviser to the head of the OP spoke specifically about air attacks on military targets deep in Russian territory, and not about a full-scale offensive. When asked by a Die Welt journalist about the depletion of Russian resources and when a turning point would be reached, Mykhailo Podoliak replied:

“This year, the Kremlin is spending $140 billion on the war and investing heavily in the military industry. But the deficit is growing, especially in ammunition, shells and missiles. That is why our air strikes on Russian territory are so important. First, it destroys production, warehouses and logistics, which affects resources and further exacerbates exhaustion. This is the military component, but there is also a social component. When attacks are carried out on a large scale, not only in Kursk and other border areas, but deep in Russia, in Saratov, Oriol, Leningrad and the Moscow region, then the social mood is completely different. People understand that there is a war going on in Russia too”.

So, in his answer, Mykhailo Podolyiak emphasizes the importance of Ukrainian air strikes on military targets deep inside Russian territory.

In the end, the adviser to the head of the Presidential Office repeated similar theses in a commentary for RBC-Ukraine, published on October 16, 2024. In it, he indicated that the classified appendices to the Victory Plan state, in particular, what kind of weapons should be used to destroy logistics, military facilities and concentrations of manpower on Russian territory.

Propagandists on anonymous telegram channels are disseminating information about a new Ukrainian counteroffensive, which was allegedly developed by the Ukrainian high command. It allegedly includes an attack on Enerhodar in order to gain control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. They say that Ukraine is ready to risk a nuclear disaster in order to save its energy system.

The purpose of this message is to create panic and fear among the population and the international community, linking possible actions of Ukraine with the threat of a nuclear disaster. Let's take a closer look at its manipulative elements and the goals of the propagandists. Propagandists want to make people believe that it is the actions of Ukraine, not Russia, that can lead to a nuclear disaster. They say that it is ready to risk global security to achieve its goals. Propagandists try to create an impression of authenticity by using “insider information” language. However, most often they use such words to hide their lack of any reliable sources confirming what they want.

Russia often uses nuclear threats as a tool to intimidate and influence the international community. Propaganda is actively using the topic of nuclear security to force the international community and Ukraine to make concessions and compromises in favor of Russia by creating fear of a nuclear disaster. And also to divert attention from Russia’s aggressive actions in Ukraine. In general, Russian propaganda creates controversial or sensational messages to influence the ability of those in their audience to distinguish truth from lies.

Propagandists are distributing a video on social networks that they are trying to present as a mocking video on behalf of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It depicts Ukrainian soldiers allegedly laughing at the counteroffensive, repeating the phrase “we carried out a successful counteroffensive in our pants”. However, this is fake.

Specialists from the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. They found out that this video is not on the official pages of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the General Staff on social networks, nor on their official websites. In addition, during editing, the propagandists made a mistake with the symbolism, using the cross of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine instead of the emblem of the Armed Forces. All ten frames from which the video is compiled are taken from open sources. For example, one fragment is taken from a video published on the Insider UA telegram channel, where fighters ask for financial support for the Kraken unit. Another excerpt was found in a video filmed on the day of the liberation of Kherson by the Defense Forces in November 2022.

This is not the first time Russian propaganda has used the phrase “successful counteroffensive in your pants” to discredit Ukraine. President Zelenskyi acknowledged that the Defense Forces' summer counteroffensive did not produce the expected results, mainly due to insufficient allied support and the lack of necessary weapons, but he did not call it a failure. Propagandists manipulate this. Detector Media also wrote about other Russian fakes regarding the counteroffensive.

Propagandists are distributing on anonymous telegram channels a video that was published by the 1+1 channel and is part of the United News telethon. It claims that the Ukrainian counteroffensive is a successful information-psychological special operation against the Russians. However, this is fake.

Specialists from the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. The video is distributed exclusively by Russian and pro-Russian sources, information from which was first published in the Sheikh Tamir telegram channel. There are no such records on the official resources of “1+1”. Errors were found in the video itself and outdated or Russian footage was used.

There is also an error in the video. From 00:25 to 00:28 the phrase is heard: “Russians are prone to a powerful psychological attack”. In Russian subtitles this text is translated as “Russians are subject to a powerful psychological attack”. The word “subject to” is a mistranslation of the word “subject to”. In this case, the words “subject to” or “experience” should be used. In addition, the video of the counteroffensive used old footage or recordings from Russian sources. For example, the moment with the husband in the hood is part of the video for the song of the Russian group “Hudson”. Another episode with military equipment and Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers is a clipping from a video by Military Television and Falcon Studio, published back in 2015.

Propagandists spread such fake news to discredit the Ukrainian armed forces. They say the counteroffensive was not successful. Detector Media has already refuted other Russian fabrications on the topic of a counteroffensive.

Pro-Russian resources are spreading information that the Ukrainian army has stopped attacking and gone on the defensive, and the Russian military is stretching the Ukrainian Armed Forces along the entire front line. In asserting this, propagandists refer to an interview with former Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Hanna Maliar, which she gave to the online publication Liga.net.

Experts from the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security developed this case. It turned out that the Russians manipulated Maliar’s words. In the interview, she made an assumption about the task of the Russians: to prevent the Ukrainian army from concentrating forces in a specific place. Also, the former Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine noted that it is the Russian army that is stretching its troops along the front line in order to exhaust the Ukrainian defenders and prepare itself for offensive actions. In the end, there were no statements from Maliar that Ukraine was no longer advancing.

Thus, Russian propaganda is trying to discredit the Ukrainian counteroffensive and assure everyone around that the advantage on the front line lies in Russia. Previously, we refuted the information that Valerii Zaluzhnyi allegedly ordered preparations for defense between Mykolaiv and Odesa.

Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric on social networks are publishing an article by the author of the British publication The Telegraph, Lewis Page, claiming that he allegedly writes about the misuse of Western equipment by the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) during the counteroffensive. However, this is manipulation.

Specialists from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that such an article by The Telegraph really exists, and its author actually writes about the difficulties of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, but does not claim that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are using Western equipment incorrectly. The article notes that the Ukrainian counteroffensive is a difficult task. The author rather criticizes Western experts who say that “properly used” Western tanks will help quickly end the war.

The article also reveals some facts about the supply of tanks to Ukraine, noting that as of August 2023, only a limited number of tanks had been transferred. The journalist adds that criticism of the use of Western equipment by the Armed Forces of Ukraine is unfair, since the West has limited the use of equipment for attacks on Russian territory and delayed the supply of tanks to Ukraine. The article notes the success of the Ukrainian army in conditions of limited access to Western equipment and reveals the essence of the circumstances that determined the development of the situation at the front.

By spreading such manipulations, propagandists want to create a myth that Western media consider the Armed Forces of Ukraine to be insufficiently competent compared to the Russian army. They say that this is why the peoples of Western countries must resist military aid for Ukraine. Detector Media has repeatedly refuted fakes and manipulations of Russian propaganda directed against the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Such information was disseminated on social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that the Ukrainian counteroffensive is in fact “staged”. The authors of the fake message convince readers that there is no action on the part of the Ukrainian army, and they have been “defeated”  for a long time. As evidence, they allegedly refer to a news story filmed by Ukrainian media professionals. It explains that “war occurs in our minds”. It's a lie.

The Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security explains that the story is compiled: it was assembled from different pieces of video, and not a single Ukrainian media outlet has produced such a video. Moreover, it is distributed only in the Russian segment of social networks.

Thus, the authors resort to typical conspiracy theories and seek to deny everything that is happening around them. Russian propaganda operates on this principle, for example, when it says that Ukraine supposedly does not exist, which means there are no wars, they are all theatrical. After all, the Kremlin's minions are trying to obscure reality.

By the way, in our Newspeak section we also analyzed how Russia seeks to deny the existence of Ukraine and blind the eyes of Russians and other peoples who do not perceive the Ukrainian state as an independent, sovereign state. Propagandists do this using the term “country 404”.

Pro-Kremlin telegram channels are disseminating information that graffiti allegedly appeared in Venice, Italy, related to the Ukrainian counteroffensive directly “showing the essence of the counteroffensive”. Russian propaganda refers to an article allegedly from the ANSA news agency and distributes a screenshot from their website with this graffiti. In the photo one sees an image of a man and the inscription “the counteroffensive does not end,” almost completely covered by water. It's fake.

The case was examined by the fact-checkers from the Center for Countering Disinformation. They found that there is no such article or photo of this graffiti on the ANSA website.

Russian propaganda continues to spread disinformation about the failed Ukrainian counteroffensive on behalf of foreign media in order to further their message about Ukraine's failure at the front. Thus, Russian propaganda is trying to cause panic among Ukrainians and demoralize military personnel, as well as show that the West does not support Ukraine. Previously, we refuted the fake news that graffiti with “Zelenskyi the cannibal” was created in Berlin.

Pro-Kremlin media are disseminating information that the head of the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jan Lipavský, allegedly said that Ukraine failed the counteroffensive and will now face pressure from its Western allies. They will encourage negotiations with Russia. This is manipulation.

The case was noticed by the checkers of the StopFake project.  Jan Lipavský did not talk about the failure of the Ukrainian counteroffensive or about new problems for Ukraine. Russian propaganda took out of context a comment by the head of the Czech Foreign Ministry for Bloomberg, in which he reflected on the West’s desire to put an end to Russian expansionism.

“If Ukraine is forced into a solution it doesn’t accept, the West will lose it — and we’ll have a nation of 40 million at our borders feeling betrayed. We don’t want to just defer the war. We want to end Russia’s ability to expand in eastern Europe by force”, ” Lipavský said.

It was this quote that Russian propaganda distorted, deliberately rejecting part of his statement.

Thus, Russian propagandists are trying to discredit Western partners and continue to promote the narrative of a failed Ukrainian counteroffensive. They also continue to nourish the message that the West is tired of war, so Ukraine will have to give in to Russia. Previously, we refuted the fake that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that the West is tired of war and is ready to make concessions to Russia.

Anonymous telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric are disseminating information that the chief of staff of the Azov brigade, Bohdan “Tavr” Krotevych, allegedly said in an interview that the Ukrainian counteroffensive was greatly promoted, and Russia has never lost in wars. This is manipulation.

As fact-checkers of the VoxCheck project noted, Bogdan Krotevich spoke in an interview about the strong PR of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, but this was in the context of predicting the end of the war - no one can predict this. However, he did not say that Russia never lost wars. Krotevych noted that it has not yet been destroyed. He also added that there is no scenario where Ukraine will lose. Propagandists manipulated, taking words out of context and distorting them.

Thus, Russian propaganda is trying to discredit the Ukrainian military and spreading the message that no one even believes in the victory of Ukraine, not even the military who defend it. Previously, we refuted the fake that Joe Biden admitted that Putin cannot be defeated.

Anonymous telegram channels disseminating pro-Russian rhetoric and Russian media claim that the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi allegedly admitted the failure of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ counteroffensive. Like, he made such a statement in an interview with CNN. However, this is manipulation.

Analysts from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found that in the interview cited by the propagandists, one of the topics was counteroffensive. However, in response to a request to evaluate its pace, Zelenskyi said that it was “not a film with a happy ending” and that it “will not have a happy ending” because the country has already “lost a lot of people”. This quote was taken out of context by the creators of the manipulation. The president did not once call the counteroffensive a failure throughout the interview.

With this manipulation, Russia wants to strengthen its narrative about the “failure of the counteroffensive” and discredit the Ukrainian Armed Forces. In addition, in this way she wants to force Ukraine and its population to make concessions. They say that the Ukrainian military cannot cope and it is time to end the war on Russia’s terms. Detector Media has more than once debunked other fakes related to the topic of the counteroffensive.

Russian media spread information that Ukraine allegedly blamed China and the TikTok social network for the failure of the counteroffensive. They say that the Armed Forces of Ukraine “prevented the attack of Chinese hackers” and social networks. However, this is a fake.

Specialists of the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that Ukraine did not make any statements about the “failure of the counteroffensive” and accused China. The fake was created on the basis of a long interview with Ukrainian cybersecurity expert Vitalii  Yakushev on the My — Ukraine channel. In particular, he did not make a statement about a counteroffensive, but spoke only about security in the digital world. Yakushev noted that the TikTok application has access to all information on the smartphones of both ordinary users and military personnel. Representatives of Western security services and governments of Western countries have repeatedly noted that the Chinese company ByteDance, which is the owner of the social network, is subject to a number of Chinese laws in the field of national security, obliging businesses to cooperate with state intelligence.

By creating and spreading fakes about the counteroffensive, propagandists want to create a false impression that the Ukrainians are losing on the battlefield. Detector Media has repeatedly written about how Russian propaganda lies about the Ukrainian military and the situation at the front, including the fact that Ukraine allegedly killed a Russian journalist with American cluster shells.

This thesis was spread on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that the US allegedly “manages” the agenda in Ukraine. Like, the political power of Ukraine is concentrated in the hands of the United States. The authors add that Zelenskyi is not at all capable of leading the state, because he “entrusted” it to Joseph Biden.

This case was processed by the specialists of the EU vs Disinfo project and they explained that, first of all, Ukraine is defending itself from an unprovoked Russian invasion, and the United States and other countries, respectively, provide assistance to it. That is, the thesis of external leadership is unfounded, because the strategic partners of Ukraine are trying to ensure peace, and not to introduce their own rules.

After all, propagandists want to show that all political decisions in Ukraine are made by Western officials while Ukrainian politicians are subject to these decisions, without the right to appeal them. Allegedly, any events taking place in Ukraine and not in favor of Russia are caused by control from outside. Thus, the authors are trying to form the image of a puppet country that cannot exist on its own and constantly needs “protection”.

Russian media broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric spread information that NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg allegedly stated that the Ukrainian military had problems with the counteroffensive. Propagandists refer to his recent interview with Politico and write that NATO allegedly had to admit that “the publicized counteroffensive does not bring the expected results”. It is not true.

The fact checkers of the StopFake project drew attention to the case. In an interview with Politico, Jens Stoltenberg did not talk about unjustified expectations from the counteroffensive. On the contrary, he was optimistic about the actions of the Ukrainian military and noted that, despite the difficulties, they are moving forward.

Thus, Russian propagandists are trying to convince Ukrainians that the counterattack is not successful, and Western partners do not believe in Ukraine's victory. They also want to discredit NATO. Earlier, Detector Media denied the fake that the 92nd brigade would be disbanded and the military would be transferred to other units.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that one of the Ukrainian websites published the number of “victims of the counteroffensive”. It is not true.

Fact-checkers of the StopFake project investigated this case and found out that such a site really exists. However, the site was created by propagandists. It turned out that it can only be found through the Russian search engine Yandex. As well as the cache of the site is saved on the Russian search engine. That is, the site is published in the Russian segment of the network. There are no public projects involved in counting the dead and wounded during the Ukrainian counteroffensive. This information is confidential.

However, the Ukrainian military leadership noted that the losses in the Armed Forces of Ukraine are much less than in the Russian army. Thus, the authors are trying to demoralize the Ukrainians and once again speculate on the topic of the counteroffensive. We have repeatedly refuted such cases. For example, in one of these cases, the propagandists tried to convince the West that the Ukrainian counteroffensive was a failure and that they were preparing to lose.

Propagandists in the Russian media are spreading disinformation based on an interview with the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for The Washington Post. In particular, they claim that Valerii Zaluzhnyi allegedly accuses Western partners of turning the counteroffensive into a “clownery”. It's fake.

Specialists in the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that in fact Zaluzhnyi did not say anything about clowning. At the same time, commenting on the progress of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, he noted that despite the lack of a number of necessary types of weapons in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Ukrainian army “is moving forward every day, even if it is only 500 meters”. Therefore, he is “irritated” by statements that the Ukrainian counteroffensive is moving “slower than expected”.

Thus, propagandists want to discredit the Armed Forces of Ukraine and create a false impression of Russia's victory on the battlefield. In addition, they want to show Ukraine and its government as ungrateful for the help of Western partners.

Propagandists in the Russian media are spreading information that the Ukrainian Defense Ministry has acknowledged that the Russian army has “advanced in many directions”. Like, such a statement was made by Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar. It's fake.

Specialists in the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that the propagandists created a fake based on a recent post by Maliar in her telegram channel. Although she recalled the Russian offensive in the Avdiivka, Mariinka, Lyman and Svativsk  directions, she did not write anything about the “successes” of the Russian army or that the Russians were “occupying new territories”. The only value judgment contained in the message is the phrase “the situation is rather complicated”. On the contrary, Maliar argues that Ukrainian troops are advancing in several directions.

Thus, propagandists want to discredit the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense and cause Ukrainians to panic. Like, the Russians are already winning and even the officials admit it.

This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. The Estonian intelligence ex-chairman admitted that the counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine “will turn into a failure” due to the effective defense of Russia and its superiority in the air, the reports say. The authors refer to an interview by Rainer Sachs on Estonian television. This is manipulation.

The fact-checkers of the Center for Counteracting Disinformation under the National Security and Defense Council drew attention to the case, and they determined that such an ex-member of the Estonian intelligence did not speak. During the live broadcast, Rainer Sachs was invited as an expert to comment on the situation with the Ukrainian counteroffensive. Meanwhile, he said that the Russians have an advantage in the air, but they do not dare to come very close to the front. That is, the expert assessed the combat capability of Russia. However, he did not say that under such a scenario, the counteroffensive was doomed. The propagandists distorted the context of the interview.

By spreading such manipulations, the authors seek to demoralize Ukrainians, while using the figure of international experts. It seems that they themselves are not confident in the victory of Ukraine. Thus, propagandists mistake the wish for reality.