Russian propagandists arrive to Kherson region to film Russian shelling and blame Ukrainian Armed Forces - Deputy Defense Minister Maliar

Russian propagandists have arrived to the temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories to film results of shelling for Russian TV channels and blame Ukrainian defenders for launching it

Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar informed about this on Telegram.

"Under the guise of journalists from central Russian TV channels, groups of professional propagandists arrived in the areas near the contact line and were urgently engaged in fabricating false videos aimed at discrediting the Ukrainian Defense Forces and justifying the actions of the Russian occupiers," she said.

For example, the filming was mostly carried out in the towns and villages of Kakhovka and Hola Prystan districts, Kherson region. It took place at civilian infrastructure facilities, medical and educational institutions, which had been deliberately attacked by Russian troops before. However, the propagandists accused the Ukrainian Armed Forces of these crimes, confirming the "attacks" with "documentary footage."

"In addition, a separate topic of Russian fake videos was an attempt to show the alleged massive support of local schoolchildren for the symbols of Russian statehood and the actions of the occupiers. In particular, the propagandists filmed the collective singing of the Russian national anthem by schoolchildren and children making postcards-gifts to Russian soldiers, which expressed gratitude for the liberation and reunification with Russia," she added, noting that Moscow sought to create an appropriate information background before Vladimir Putin's annual address to the Federal Assembly.