It comes as Ukraine’s Defence Minister posted a cryptic tweet on Sun. quoting English electronic band Depeche Mode
Russian broadcast channels have been hacked to feature speeches from a fake Vladimir Putin & a Ukrainian propaganda clip, according to reports.
The series of hacks, which have taken place in recent days, coincide with speculation that Ukraine has begun a widely anticipated counter-offensive.
President Putin
On Sun., a “deep fake” of President Putin, produced by artificial intelligence, appeared on Russian TV, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The figure reportedly called a further cohort of Russian troops up for active service.
The next day, Russia itself admitted radio stations in Moscow-controlled Crimea had accidently played a fabricated Putin address.
In the speech, ‘Putin’ announced martial law, telling listeners Ukraine had invaded Russia, a local Russian authority told state-run agency RIA Novosti.
Broadcasters
“It was indeed a hack. We know about it. Now the broadcasters are being urgently informed by the relevant depts. about this,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov outlined.
According to Ukrainian officials, hackers interrupted Russian TV with footage from Ukraine’s Defence Ministry.
The video, also published on social media by Ukraine’s own defence minister, showed soldiers putting a finger to their lips in a sign to keep quiet. “Plans love silence,” it observed on screen. “There will be no announcement of the start.”
Responsibility
Ukraine has not fully claimed responsibility for hacking any Russian stations.
Ukraine often waits until the completion of its military operations to confirm its actions, imposing news blackouts in the interim. However, unconfirmed reports have created speculation that a major Ukrainian ground operation could be underway as part of the anticipated counter-offensive.
On Mon., Russia‘s Defence Ministry claimed Ukraine launched a major offensive overnight to “no success”. The Ukrainian military dismissed the allegation, suggesting Russia was executing a misinformation campaign.
Anticipated Counter-Offensive
Though it is unclear whether the attack was the beginning of Ukraine’s highly anticipated counter-offensive, Russia has claimed its forces had stalled a large enemy attack in the Eastern province of Donetsk, Ukraine.
The Russian Ministry, in an unusual early am video on Mon., stated its forces pushed back a “large scale” Ukrainian assault on Sun. at 5 points in Southern Donetsk, one of 4 Ukrainian regions Russia illegally annexed last Autumn.
Enemy’s Goal
“The enemy’s goal was to break through our defences in the most vulnerable, in its opinion, sector of the front,” explained the Russian Ministry’s spokesman, Igor Konashenkov.
“The enemy did not achieve its tasks. It had no success.”
Mr Konashenkov claimed that 250 Ukrainian personnel were killed, & 16 Ukrainian tanks, 3 infantry fighting vehicles & 21 armoured combat vehicles were destroyed.
Ukraine did not comment, & often waits until the completion of its military operations to confirm its actions, imposing news blackouts in the interim.
Russian Defence Ministry
It was unclear why the Russian Defence Ministry waited until Mon. morning to announce the attack, which it said started Sun. morning.
For months, Ukrainian officials have spoken of plans to launch a spring counter-offensive to reclaim territory Russia has occupied since invading on Feb. 24, 2022, as well as the Crimean Peninsula it seized in 2014.
They have given mixed signals about what would constitute a counter-offensive – preliminary, limited attacks to weaken Russian forces & military facilities or a full simultaneous assault across the entire 1,100 km (684 mile) front line.
