Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin’s forces committing war crimes in Pokrovsk with new tactic, says Kyiv
Russian forces fighting in Pokrovsk are disguising themselves by dressing up as civilians, Ukrainian military officials have said, adding to the challenge of holding on to the strategic city.
Military personnel deliberately passing as civilians to deceive the enemy is classified as a war crime, and even changing into the uniforms of Ukrainian forces or other Ukrainian security services violates the laws and customs of war.
“The most difficult thing is that they disguise themselves as civilians. They have been changing clothes for a long time and receive instructions to do so,” the commander of the 68th Jaeger Brigade, codenamed “Liutyi,” told Suspilne.
“Sometimes we identify the enemy only after the start of the firefight, because civilians will not open fire on our units,” he said.
Earlier, the Kremlin denied reports that Russia is holding secret talks with the Trump administration over ending the war in Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday dismissed a report in Axios which claimed that US officials had drawn up a 28-point peace plan consisting of “security guarantees, security in Europe, and future US relations with Russia and Ukraine”.
