In Kupiansk, occupants are dropping flags with supplies to pretend to control the city – details

The Russian occupiers have been ordered to simulate control over Kupiansk, Kharkiv region, by dropping Russian flags in supply packages from drones, reported Joint Forces Group of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The military called it a "Potemkin seizure," noting that the occupiers were "waving flags" in a city they did not control.

"According to the Joint Forces Group, the Russian military in Kupiansk received a command to simulate control over the city by waving Russian flags where their small groups are present. The occupiers began to put flags in supply packages for their own military, which are dropped on the city using drones," the publication says.

The group noted that at least one such "operation" by the occupiers had already taken place: "We expect a quick and somewhat cropped video in all Russian media."

The military noted that the occupation of the city is "not something that can be imitated," emphasizing that despite the dictator's statements Vladimir Putin and the Russian General Staff about the alleged encirclement of the city and Ukrainian troops in it, most of Kupiansk is under the control of the Defense Forces.

The JFO also noted that the occupation groups in the northern districts of Kupiansk are cut off from ground supplies.

According to the military, the current action with the flags is "an attempt to make a good face for a bad game and cover up the obvious lies of the head of the Russian regime."

"At the same time, the Defense Forces are grateful to the Russian commanders for helping to "illuminate" small infantry groups scattered around Kupiansk with such actions. This makes the work of Ukrainian drone operators easier. As for the Russian soldiers who received such an order, we advise them to live a little longer – all they need to do is change their flag to white," the post concluded.

According to the Ukrainian analytical project Deepstate, part of the city is currently under Ukrainian control, part is controlled by the occupiers, and part is in the gray zone. The last change in the city was recorded on October 19, when the occupiers managed to advance. Changes to this map appear with a delay.

• Earlier, a spokesman for the Joint Forces Operation said that the occupiers gradually lose control of Kupiansk.
• At the same time, the day before, on November 15, the Southern Defense Forces announced the withdrawal of Ukrainian units from the settlement Novovasylivske in Zaporizhzhia region amid the invaders' recent advance in this direction.