--- title: "Kremlin claims 'capture' of Sviatohorsk: ISW names the actual position of Russian troops" description: "The Kremlin again claimed the capture of Sviatohorsk, but according to ISW, Russian units are more than 13 km from the city, and the 'fresh' footage turned out to be edited." date: 2026-09-08T07:46:00.000Z lang: en url: https://xab.info/en/posts/sviatogorsk-kremlin-capture-isw tags: [ukraine-war, svyatogorsk, isw, russia, donetsk] publisher: "XAB.info" --- # Kremlin claims 'capture' of Sviatohorsk: ISW names the actual position of Russian troops ![Russian military personnel on an armored vehicle with Russian flag in combat zone](https://xab.info/media/2026/09/08/svyatogorsk-kreml-zahvat-isw/svyatogorsk-kreml-zahvat-isw-1.webp) ## 🎯 Key Points - Russia claimed the capture of Sviatohorsk, but ISW assesses the distance to the nearest Russian units at more than 13 km. - The 'fresh' footage of control over the city, in ISW's assessment, turned out to be old edited recordings; a Russian military blogger also debunked them. - According to Pavlo Palisa, the Kremlin demands the occupation of Donetsk Oblast by the end of 2026, while the military are asking to postpone the deadline to March 31, 2027. Moscow once again publicly claimed the alleged full capture of Sviatohorsk in Donetsk Oblast. However, according to a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), cited by RBC-Ukraine, the city remains under the full control of the Ukrainian military, while Russian units are located at a considerable distance from it. ### The Kremlin's claim and the actual front line ISW analysts calculated that as early as the beginning of summer 2026, the nearest units of the Russian army were located approximately 13 kilometers from Sviatohorsk. Following the Ukrainian Armed Forces' counteroffensive, the Russian troops' defensive line, in their assessment, moved even farther from the city. Thus, the public claims of 'control' over the settlement do not, in the analysts' view, correspond to the actual deployment of forces on the front. ### 'Fresh' footage and its debunking On September 5, Russian propaganda channels attempted to present 'fresh' video footage allegedly demonstrating control over Sviatohorsk. According to ISW, in fact these were old, edited clips. On the same day, one of the Russian military bloggers publicly debunked these recordings, admitting that there were no Russian troops even near the city. The circulated footage typically shows a tracked armored vehicle marked with a 'Z' and a Russian flag, with soldiers on board. ### Contradictory data Here two versions directly clash. On the one hand, the Russian side claims that Sviatohorsk has been taken under control and backs this up with video material. On the other hand, ISW and the Ukrainian side insist that the city is fully controlled by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, while Russian units are more than 13 km away from it; the Russian footage, in their assessment, is edited and outdated. The discrepancy in assessments of the front line's position amounts, in essence, to tens of kilometers, and no independent public confirmation of the Russian version has been recorded as of the time of publication. ### The Donbas deadline: 2026 vs. 2027 Pavlo Palisa, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, spoke about a new deadline that, according to him, the Kremlin set for the military leadership. The Russian political leadership, according to his data, demands the full occupation of Donetsk Oblast by the end of 2026, while the military themselves are asking to postpone this deadline to March 31, 2027. The discrepancy between the political order and the military command's assessments points to internal tension in planning the campaign. ### ISW assessment: a distorted picture of the front ISW also explained that the systematic preparation of 'pretty reports' for the top leadership is in fact hindering the Russian troops' own conduct of combat operations. Previously, the institute's analysts noted that Vladimir Putin is not ready to go for substantial compromises to end the war against Ukraine, and that the Kremlin continues to count on achieving its goal militarily, relying, in their assessment, on a distorted picture of the situation on the front. ## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification - [Kremlin claims 'capture' of Sviatohorsk: ISW names the actual position of the occupiers](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/kreml-zayaviv-zahoplennya-svyatogirska-isw-1788853386.html) - РБК-Украина со ссылкой на отчет ISW: российские подразделения в начале лета 2026 г. находились в ~13 км от Святогорска, после контрнаступления ВСУ линия отодвинулась дальше; 5 сентября распространены старые смонтированные кадры, опровергнутые российским военным блогером; Палиса — о дедлайне до конца 2026 г. против просьбы военных о 31.03.2027. Оценка линии фронта оспаривается РФ, независимого подтверждения российской версии нет. ## ❓ FAQ ### Q: Who, according to ISW, controls Sviatohorsk? **A:** In ISW's assessment, cited by RBC-Ukraine, Sviatohorsk is fully controlled by the Ukrainian military, while the nearest Russian units are more than 13 km from the city. ### Q: What happened to the 'fresh' footage of control over the city on September 5? **A:** In ISW's assessment, these were old edited video recordings; on the same day a Russian military blogger debunked them, admitting the absence of Russian troops even near the city. ### Q: What deadline for Donetsk Oblast is named in the article? **A:** According to Pavlo Palisa, the Russian political leadership demands the occupation of Donetsk Oblast by the end of 2026, while the military are asking to postpone the deadline to March 31, 2027.