Russian TV airs apparent deepfake video of Putin ordering martial law amid reports Ukraine is on the attack
- A fake Putin declared in a video address that Ukraine's army invaded Russia and he's ordering martial law.
- The fake video was aired, due to a reported hacking, in border areas where anxiety is already high.
Something was slightly off about the Russian President Vladimir Putin whose emergency address was broadcast into some Russian homes on Monday. The deep lines in the 70-year-old leader's furrowed brow seemed to disappear too smoothly as his expression changed.
That's because it was apparently a fake, and a stunning one at that.
Appearing with the caption, "President's emergency appeal," the seemingly digitized Russian leader says that Ukraine's army has entered three border regions where he's declaring martial law and urges listeners to "evacuate deep" into Russia. Some TV and radio stations in these areas aired it due to what Russian officials called a hack; they did not identify any culprits.
"Definitely there was no address. It is true that there were hacks in some regions," said Putin's chief spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to the state-run TASS news agency. "In particular, I know that there was a hack into Radio Mir and into some networks. Now all this has been eliminated and taken under control."
Unease has been growing in Russia's border areas in recent weeks as small groups of armed anti-Putin Russian militants have stormed past border guards, forcing heavy military responses to expel them. The message delivered by fake Putin via television and radio seemed to play to these anxieties.
"Russians, brothers and sisters, today at 4 am, Ukrainian troops armed by the NATO bloc with the consent and support of Washington invaded the territories of the Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk regions," the announcement begins, according to a Russian account of the fake address. As it continues, Putin supposedly then goes on to order a mass mobilization, a step sure to trigger widespread concern that he's so far resisted taking in full.
The timing of the fake broadcast is also notable because Russian sources reported increased Ukrainian attacks at multiple positions along the long front lines on Monday. US satellites also detected movements and more activity from Ukraine's forces, The New York Times reported. Only time will tell if these moves are part of their looming counter-offensive to retake stolen land.