Shoigu lies about non-existent successes of occupiers and intensifies conflict with Prigozhin, - Defence Intelligence
Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Serhii Shoigu attributes non-existent victories to the Russian army and belittles the role of the "Wagner" PMC in the conduct of hostilities.
This was reported by the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Censor.NET informs.
The Defence Intelligence reported that Shoigu stated at a conference call that the Russian army has full control over the settlements of Soledar, Klishchiivka, Krasnopillia, Blahodatne, Mykolaivka of the Donetsk region and Pidhirne, Lobkove of Zaporizhzhia. He also mentioned the "successful" development of hostilities near Bakhmut and Vuhledar, emphasized that all the mentioned "gains" are the result of the actions of the Russian Armed Forces.
Intelligence sources emphasize that Ukrainian troops were withdrawn from the city of Soledar on January 25, which was officially reported by the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. As for other settlements, their capture by the enemy is currently not confirmed. Ukrainian Defense Forces continue protection in each of the mentioned directions.
It is noted that Shoigu deliberately did not mention the fact that the forces of the "Wagner" PMC were actively involved in all the indicated areas for the conduct of hostilities. Instead, the regular Russian army has only an episodic role of "support forces". This information is silenced by the Russian propaganda media, which, according to the Defence Intelligence, indicates the continuation of the conflict among the military and political leadership of the Russian Federation.
The Defence Intelligence reminded that at the beginning of 2023, the military command of the Russian Federation created a special document that determines how exactly propagandists should cover the war against Ukraine. The main content of the "general recommendations" is to emphasize the "prominent role" of the leadership of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, in particular Shoigu and Gerasimov. Also, the document actually introduced a ban on the mention of the "Wagner" PMC and Yevgeny Prigozhin personally.
