Ukrainian units attempted to stage a video showing the placement of a Ukrainian flag on the Sumy axis near Popovka, a settlement recently brought under Russian control. The effort fell apart, according to information provided to RIA Novosti by sources in the security services.

Earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that on February 6, units of the Sever troop grouping took control of Popovka in Sumy Oblast. The ministry said the move was intended to strengthen the buffer zone and reduce threats coming from Ukrainian forces.

Security sources said that after setbacks in another sector — near Chugunovka in the Kharkov region, which is also under Russian control — the Ukrainian command redeployed servicemen from the 14th Army Corps toward Sumy. Their task was to dig in on the southern approaches to Popovka and record their presence on video. The plan, however, did not go as intended. Ukrainian troops failed to enter the settlement itself, and the flag meant for Popovka was ultimately left in a forest belt roughly 200 meters from the village boundary.