Russian military leaders are hoping to 'mitigate' fallout from failure in southern Ukraine, the Institute for the Study of War said Wednesday night.
"Surovikin's and Saldo's statements are likely attempts to set information conditions for a full Russian retreat across the Dnipro River, which would cede Kherson City and other significant territory in Kherson Oblast to advancing Ukrainian troops," the ISW"Russian military leaders ... [are] likely attempting to mitigate the informational and operational consequences of failing to defend against another successful Ukrainian advance," it continues.
Unconfirmed social media reports claimed that Russian intelligence service officers and Chechen troops had already begun tofrom the city of Kherson two or three days ago. The city, on the Dnipro River's west bank, is the capital of the Kherson region and the first major settlement that Russia captured after invading Ukraine on February 24.
ISW said Russian forces are planning to launch a"false-flag" attack on the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant, which is less than 50 miles east of the city of Kherson. Surovikin and Saldo have both preemptively claimed in recent days that the Ukrainian military is planning to launch an attack on the plant.
"The Kremlin could attempt to leverage such a false-flag attack to overshadow the news of a third humiliating retreat for Russian forces, this time from western Kherson," ISW said."Such an attack would also further the false Russian information operation portraying Ukraine as a terrorist state that deliberately targets civilians."
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