Kremlin claims Sviatohirsk is under Russian control, ISW gives the real picture
Photo: Putin's claims about the capture of Sviatohirsk are untrue (Russian media)
Russia has once again claimed that it allegedly captured Sviatohirsk in the Donetsk region, but Ukrainian troops fully control the city, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
ISW analysts calculated that at the start of summer, the nearest Russian units were 13 kilometers from Sviatohirsk.
After the counteroffensive by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Russian defense line was pushed even farther away from the city.
How propaganda tried to present what it wanted as reality
On September 5, Russian propagandists tried to show supposedly "fresh" footage of control over Sviatohirsk. In reality, these were old edited video recordings.
That same day, one of the Russian military bloggers debunked the footage. He admitted that there were no Russians even near the city.
Why fake reports hurt the occupiers themselves
ISW explained that the systematic compilation of "beautiful reports" for senior leadership hinders the conduct of combat operations by the Russians themselves:
Brigades and regiments plan maneuvers based on a false map of the front. This leads to operational mistakes and additional personnel losses.
Meanwhile, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Pavlo Palisa spoke about a new deadline that the Kremlin has set for its military.
According to him, Russia's political leadership is demanding the complete occupation of the Donetsk region by the end of 2026, while the military is asking to postpone the deadline to March 31, 2027.
ISW analysts previously pointed out that Putin is not ready to make significant compromises to end the war against Ukraine.
According to their assessment, the Kremlin continues to count on achieving its goal militarily, relying on a distorted picture of the situation on the front.
