On Monday, two Russian news agencies published alerts claiming that Moscow was moving troops “to more advantageous positions” east of the Dnipro River in Ukraine, only to retract that information just minutes later. According to the British newspaper “This unusual approach indicatesThe Telegraph“ points to confusion within the Russian military apparatus and state media over reporting on the situation on the front in southern Ukraine.

Ministry of Defense denied

RBC news agency quoted the Defense Ministry as saying: “The dissemination of a false report about the ‘regrouping’ of troops in the Dnepr (Dnipro) region, allegedly in the name of the press center of the Russian Defense Ministry, is a provocation.”

Just last week, the Russian military announced that its forces had thwarted a Ukrainian attempt to establish a bridgehead on the eastern bank of the Dnipro and nearby islands.

Alarm reports on Monday

In a series of three alerts on Monday, state news agency RIA reported that the command of Russia’s Dnepr Forces Group had decided to move troops “to more favorable positions” east of the Dnipro.

RIA further stated that after the regrouping, some troops from the Dnepr Group should be withdrawn and deployed to other fronts. The Russian military leadership agreed with the conclusions of the Dnieper leadership and ordered the withdrawal of troops, RIA said.

But as The Telegraph further reports, these reports were retracted shortly after publication without further explanation, which could indicate possible miscommunication or confusion within the Russian military and state media.