Russian troops plant flag at border in Chernihiv Oblast, Border Guard says no major offensive detected

Editor's note: This story is being updated as more details emerge.

State Border Guard spokesperson Andrii Demchenko confirmed to the Kyiv Independent that a Russian sabotage group planted a Russian flag near the border in Ukraine's Chernihiv Oblast, but said that the event occurred in the grey zone and Russian troops did not launch a major offensive in the region.

Demchenko's statement comes on Nov. 15 after Russian military bloggers posted videos purportedly showing Russian troops planting a flag on the bridge over the Sudost River near the border settlement of Hremiach and claimed they entered Hremiach and Muravi. Demchenko denied that Russian forces entered the settlements and said that they did not cross the bridge.

"The territory where the (Russian) sabotage group operated from the border is actually cut off by rivers, and no one lives in the settlements located between the rivers and the border. In addition, due to the constant flooding of that territory, it is not possible to build proper fortifications there," Demchenko said in a comment.

"Ukraine's defense forces fully control this axis and are in the most advantageous positions to hold the defense."

Demchenko added that Ukraine has deployed additional forces in the area to fend off acts of sabotage from Russia.

"The threat from Russian sabotage and intelligence groups has not disappeared anywhere, in particular in Chernihiv Oblast. Although the activity of saboteurs has decreased significantly recently, the terrorist country has not given up on the use of sabotage groups, including for psychological influence."

The Russian service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) wrote on Nov. 15 that it had confirmed the geolocation of two Russian soldiers seen in footage shared by Russian military bloggers planting a flag on the bridge over the Sudost River. RFE/RL suggested the two soldiers were part of a larger group.

Chernihiv Oblast is located on Ukraine’s northern border with Russia and Belarus. It was partially occupied during Russia's initial offensive in February 2022, but the invading force retreated in April after the Kremlin failed to take Kyiv.

Since then, Russian forces have been regularly shelling regional settlements near the border and launching cross-border raids into the region.

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The Kyiv IndependentKateryna Hodunova