Russian Defense Ministry claims Shoigu came to Ukraine to ‘present awards’
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Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reportedly made a visit to the “combat zone” in Ukraine, according to a statement from Russian Defense Ministry posted on August 4.
During his trip, it was reported that he “held a meeting at the headquarters of the joint group of Russian forces to discuss the execution of the state defense order” and handed out some “awards” to personnel.
One of the main points of interest for Shoigu was the presence of German Leopard 2 tanks in the arsenal of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
He specifically inquired with the commander of the Russian Central Group, Andrei Mordvichev, whether he had encountered them in action. However, it was revealed that their engagement had occurred deep in the rear, and the Ukrainian armored vehicles had not yet reached that area.
“Do you have Leopards here?” asked Shoigu.
“No, Comrade Minister of Defense,” came the response.
“Well, never mind then.”
The Russian Defense Ministry has reported several trips by Shoigu to the front line in Russian-occupied Ukraine, but all geolocatable footage of these trips have shown the Russian defense minister to be in areas well behind the front line. There is no known footage of him actually at front-line positions.
In one case, when the Russian Defense Ministry claimed that Shoigu was visiting the Russian-occupied part of Ukraine’s Kherson Oblast, footage of the defense minister in his helicopter was geolocated to Ukraine’s Russian-occupied Crimea, some distance away.
Meanwhile, in a visit abroad in late July, Shoigu travelled to North Korea, where he reportedly attempted to procure ammunition from that country’s dictator, Kim Jong-un, for the Russian army.
He allegedly employed a great deal of flattery in his talks with Kim, but it remains uncertain whether the Russian minister was successful in reaching a deal with the North Korean dictator.
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