Zelenskyy: Russian "propaganda operation" occurred in Ryzhivka, Sumy Oblast

The village of Ryzhivka (Sumy Oblast), which Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov claimed was captured on 9 June and released a video allegedly taken in the settlement, is under the control of Ukrainian forces. [The Chechen Republic, also known as Chechnya, is a federal subject of the Russian Federation; the Ukrainian parliament has recognised it as the temporarily Russian-occupied territory of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria – ed.]

Source: Yurii Zarko, Head of Bilopillia hromada, on the air of Radio Liberty; President Volodymyr Zelenskyy [A hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories – ed.]

Details: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that Ukrainian forces were in control of the situation in Sumy Oblast. The Russians are using sabotage and reconnaissance groups (SRGs), but they are being detected and destroyed.

Quote from Zelenskyy: "As for the village of Ryzhivka, the invaders attempted to carry out a propaganda operation there. As of this morning, the Russian flag in the village has been destroyed, and there is no invaders' presence."

Details: According to Zarko, there are no such buildings in Ryzhivka as those shown in the photos and videos posted by Russian authorities. Zarko further added that the village is located on the front line; therefore, it is "quite possible" that Russian SRGs could infiltrate it.

Quote from Zarko: "You could say that it's a grey area. Because there, you know, one house can be half in Ukraine and half in Russia. The distance to the state border is extremely close. That is, it can be directly called a line of contact [between Ukrainian and Russian forces]. Therefore, we understand that such issues as infiltration by the SRGs are quite possible. It happens from time to time. Moreover, given the geographical location, where there are forests and a river, the work of these SRGs is a little bit easier. The footage we have seen does not correspond to reality, in the sense that there are no such specific buildings, and there is no such river as we saw in the photos on social media."

Support UP or become our patron!