THIS is the astonishing moment Vladimir Putin’s top general brazenly lies about Russia’s war progress.
Footage shows army head Valery Gerasimov making wild claims to the tyrant including made-up land grabs and annexations.
The claims were so outlandish, however, even Russians have taken notice with many “angrily” denouncing the general’s “false” reporting.
Gerasimov alleged Russian forces surrounded up to 5,500 Ukrainian soldiers near Pokrovsk, trapping 31 Ukrainian battalions in the wider Pokrovsk–Myrnohrad region.
He also shamelessly stated that officials sealed off the area and disrupted Ukrainian supply lines.
Gerasimov also suggested his troops had captured crossings over the Oskil River, trapping 18 Ukrainian battalions there.
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But eagle-eyed historians were quick to point out similar claims made by Russian officials in 2024 which were later proven false.
Gerasimov also reported that Russian forces had seized over 70 percent of Vovchansk, northeast of Kharkiv, and had captured several settlements near Lyman and Kostyantynivka.
These claims have also raised suspicions with one Russian condemning Gerasimov as “getting ahead of himself again” – suggesting the general’s reports were designed to impress “foreign audiences”.
The general also confirmed the Kremlin’s ongoing operations in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson and demands for Ukraine to relinquish full control of the regions.
The land-grabbing ambitions exposed by Gerasimov rail against what Putin has said in peace negotiations.
In August’s Alaska summit, Putin reportedly suggested freezing the frontline if Ukraine handed over the remaining chunk of the Donbas.
Kyiv is clinging onto a well-fortified strip dubbed the “Fortress Belt”.
Last month, the tyrant had his foreign ministry trot out a list of impossible demands, including Ukraine’s total disarmament and the country cutting all military ties to the West.
Press chief Maria Zakharova said: “We proceed from the assumption that the agreement must include demilitarisation, denazification, neutral, non-aligned and non-nuclear status for Ukraine.”
She also ranted that Kyiv had to cave in on “protection of the rights of the Russian language and the Russian-speaking population, and an end to persecution of canonical Orthodox Christianity”.
The hardline ultimatum has been authorised by Putin knowing that Mr Zelensky cannot agree to leave his nation defenceless against further land grabs with no Western backing.
The back-and-forth has left Donald Trump raging. He has said he will not meet Putin until he can prove he is serious about wanting peace in Ukraine.
Speaking on Air Force One on Saturday during his visit across Asia, Trump said: “We’re going to have to know that we’re going to make a deal.
“I’m not going to be wasting my time.
“I’ve always had a great relationship with [Putin]but this has been very disappointing.”
The Republican strongman added that he is shocked there is yet to be a resolution despite months of attempts to bring Ukraine and Russia to the negotiating table.
Trump has been a key player in resolving several conflicts across the globe since he returned to the Oval Office in January.
He has been commended for helping broker peace in longlasting wars in EuropeAfrica, Asia and most notably the Middle East in Gaza.
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Trump explained: “I thought [the Hamas-Israel ceasefire deal] would have been more difficult than Russia and Ukraine, but it didn’t work out that way.
“There’s a lot of hatred between the two — between Zelensky and Putin. There’s tremendous hatred.”