StratCom: Russian agents try to post fake news article in Odesa media outlet

The Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security (StratCom) reports Russian agents trying to post a fake news article in Odesa Online, posing as the Defense Intelligence Department of Ukraine's Ministry of Defense.

On July 26, the media outlet received an e-mail claiming to be from the DIU with a request to post an article titled "Time to take back what is yours!"

The Center for Strategic Communications learned that the DIU sent no emails to local media.

StratCom also notes that the article had clear signs of a Russian psyop, as it described the unfavorable battlefield situation and vaguely blamed the government for the failure of the mobilization effort.

The article also claims that:

• the military command is taking the mobilization-related authority upon itself;
• reporting draft dodgets to the police is encouraged;
• enlistment office employees have permission to use weapons to detain conscripts with no grounds.

"In this way, the propagandists want to discourage citizens from joining the Ukrainian Armed Forces, while sowing panic and a desire to leave Ukraine. The distribution of the sham news article was prevented," notes the StratCom.

Earlier, the Stratcom reported that YouTube deleted the channels of the foreign "bloggers" promoting a positive image of Russia and whitewashing it.