2026년 7월, 코스티안티니우카 전투의 진실: 푸틴의 허위 주장과 우크라이나의 반격

CNN reported on July 16 that the slow, costly infiltration of Kostiantynivka showed the Kremlin's willingness to tolerate devastating casualties for even minimal tactical gains, and that the Russian claim was unsupported by battlefield reality .

July 18: Ukraine's Clearing Operation and Flag-Raising

On July 18, 2026, soldiers of the 425th Separate Assault Regiment "Skelya" (also transliterated as "Skala" or "The Rock") conducted a sweep/clearing operation in Kostiantynivka, killed remaining Russian personnel, and raised the Ukrainian flag over a building in the city center . Multiple Ukrainian outlets reported the operation, with video footage released on the regiment's social media accounts .

The regiment stated: "The town is under the control of the Armed Forces of Ukraine" . This was widely covered by Interfax-Ukraine, UNN, Militarnyi, Euromaidan Press, and Censor.NET on July 18 .

The Information War: AI and Fake Flag Footage

Both sides engaged in information manipulation:

• Russian side: ISW warned that the Russian Defense Ministry and affiliated sources were publishing large volumes of footage possibly manipulated with AI to support exaggerated claims, making independent verification difficult . Russian commanders also sent soldiers on high-risk "flag-planting" missions into contested areas to produce photo reports for command, a practice documented by Radio Svoboda on July 6 .

• Russian counter-claim about Ukraine: On July 18 itself, the Russian Defense Ministry and state media (TASS, Rossiyskaya Gazeta) alleged that Ukraine's flag-raising video was AI-generated and fake, pointing to "unnatural" figure movements and flag behavior . This accusation came from Russian military sources, not independent analysts. It is part of a documented pattern — ISW has noted that Russia systematically uses AI-manipulated content to muddy verification of battlefield claims .

Independent reporting from CNN, Reuters, and ISW consistently found Ukraine's July 18 operation to be credible, supported by unit-level video evidence, and consistent with the pattern of limited Russian presence in the city .

Broader Context: Russia's Failed Spring-Summer 2026 Offensive

The Kostiantynivka episode occurred against a clear operational failure by Russia's broader 2026 campaign:

• ISW assessed on July 1, 2026 that Russia's spring-summer 2026 offensive — Moscow's declared main effort — "has failed to achieve operationally significant gains" .
• Russian forces seized just 30 square kilometers across all of Ukraine in June 2026, compared to 481 km² in June 2025 — a 16-fold slowdown — while suffering approximately 19 times higher casualties per kilometer of advance .
• Al Jazeera reported on July 3 that Russia's advance had effectively collapsed in Ukraine, with an estimated 40,000 troops killed in June alone. At the current rate, Putin's forces would need 14 years to capture the remaining 20% of Donetsk Oblast .
• The offensive was stalled by Ukraine's Fortress Belt defensive line, Ukrainian mid-range strike campaigns against Russian logistics, and massive attrition to Russian manpower .

Summary

Bottom line: Putin's July 3 claim of capturing Kostiantynivka was unsupported by evidence. The city remained a contested gray zone for two weeks, until Ukrainian forces from the 425th "Skelya" Regiment cleared it and raised the flag on July 18. The incident exemplifies the broader pattern of Russia's spring-summer 2026 offensive failing to produce meaningful operational gains despite enormous casualties.