Ukrainian military bloggers have slammed Kyiv’s generals for failing to be honest about the scale of recent military setbacks in the Donbas.
Zelensky’s army is struggling to contain unrelenting Russian attacks on the eastern front, handicapped as it is by a chronic lack of weapons and ammunition.
In a post to his Telegram channel on Sunday, General Oleksandr Syrskyi – the head of Ukraine‘s army – admitted that the situation was getting worse and that Russia had achieved tactical successes on the battlefield.
At least three villages near the captured city of Avdiivka had fallen to Putin’s army over the weekend.
These include the settlements of Semenivka and Berdychi. A few kilometers to the north, Soloviove is now also reported to be in Russian hands, and the tiny hamlet of Keramik at least partially so as well.
Yet the military bloggers accuse Zelensky’s generals of trying to hide the extent of Ukraine‘s losses by posting misleading videos to social media.
DeepState posted a brutal video of a Russian soldier being killed in a drone strike in the village of Soloviove.
However they argued Zelensky’s generals were using the clip to mask the bigger picture, which was somewhat different.
DeepState wrote: “You can watch with pleasure forever the video of a Russian (soldier) being torn to pieces.
“But nearby there is another location that requires attention: Muscovites calmly moving around the village, keeping it under control.
“The (Ukrainian) Defence Forces inflict fire damage on them, and one can repeat at least a billion times (on national television) that two-thirds of the village is under the control of the Ukrainian military, but the picture of reality is completely different.”
This appears to be a reference to remarks made by a Ukrainian military spokesperson on Saturday regarding the situation in the nearby village of Ocheretyne.
Nazar Voloshyn claimed the settlement was still two-thirds controlled by Zelensky’s army, which was successfully repelling the Russian invaders.
DeepState’s analysts disputed the veracity of his statement, saying the village had been overrun by Putin’s army some three days earlier.
General Syrsky defended the army, saying the situation at the front was so fluid, it was very difficult to properly assess the situation.
“There is a dynamic change in the situation, some positions change hands several times a day, which give rise to an ambiguous understanding of the situation.”
Tyler Mitchell