FACT CHECK: Video Claims Ukraine Has Wiped Out Russian Army
A video shared on Facebook claims Ukraine has wiped out the Russian army and that Russian defensive lines are unmanned.
Verdict: False
While Ukraine has inflicted heavy casualties on the Russian military, there is no evidence that it has wiped out the Russians. Russian defensive lines remain intact and manned, according to the Kyiv Independent.
Fact Check:
Ukraine has launched attacks in southern and eastern Ukraine, regaining some territory from Russia, according to CNN.
The Facebook video, viewed more than 240,000 times, claims the Russian army was “wiped out.” The video’s caption reads, “Putin’s mad as HELL: Russian army WIPED OUT! The Russian defense line totally empty!”
However, this claim is false. If the Russian military had been wiped out, media outlets would have covered it, yet none have. Russian forces have suffered heavy casualties, with U.S. officials telling Fox News in May that 50,000 Russian troops have been killed and 180,000 wounded. (RELATED: Image Of American Flags Draped Over Caskets Predates Russian-Ukrainian War)
Russian defensive lines remain intact and manned, according to the Kyiv Independent. For example, a Ukrainian attempt to breach Russian fortifications south of the Orihikiv likely ended in failure, with Bradleys and Leopard 2 tanks being destroyed in the attack, the outlet reported.
And though Ukraine has found success attacking along the Velyka Novosilka axis, it has yet to reach Russia’s main defensive line in the area, according to the Kyiv Independent. The Institute for the Study of War, a non-partisan think tank, continued to report Russian attacks in its June 13 assessment of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“Russian forces continued ground attacks on the Kreminna frontline but did not conduct offensive operations on the Kupyansk-Svatove line,” reads part of the assessment, “Ukrainian forces continued to advance on Bakhmut’s northern and southern flanks, while Russian forces launched counterattacks in the vicinity of Bakhmut.”
Misinformation around the Russian-Ukrainian war is not new. Check Your Fact recently debunked an image claiming to show a destroyed Ukrainian jet in Kherson.