- Russia claimed this week that it was purposefully slowing offensives to protect civilians.
- "This is almost certainly deliberate misinformation," the UK Ministry of Defense said, pointing to an attack on civilians.
- It is "highly likely" Russia fired at least six generals for not advancing in Ukraine, the UK said.
A Russian claim that its military operations in Ukraine are slow to protect civilian lives are "almost certainly" lies, the British government said Friday, noting that such assertions came the same day an attack on a train station killed more than 20 people, reportedly including two children.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, speaking at a meeting of regional defense officials in Uzbekistan, claimed on Wednesday that Russian forces were not making more progress in Ukraine because they were taking great care to protect innocent life.
"Everything is being done to avoid casualties among civilians," Shoigu said. "Of course, this slows down the pace of the offensive, but we are doing this deliberately."
The claim came the same week that a monitoring group said that Russia's use of widely-banned cluster bombs had likely caused more than 600 civilian casualties since the Feb. 24 invasion. Since the war began, more than 5,500 civilians have been killed and over 7,800 injured, according to the United Nations.
In a statement on Friday, the British Ministry of Defense said Shoigu's remarks were "almost certainly deliberate misinformation" meant to cover the real reason his forces have not advanced faster in Ukraine: "poor Russian military performance."
"Under Shoigu's orders, the forces operating in Ukraine have repeatedly missed planned operation timelines," the ministry said.
And contrary to any ostensible concern for civilians, Shoigu and Russian President Vladimir Putin "have fired at least six generals for not advancing quickly enough," it added.
The defense ministry also noted an attack on a train station in eastern Ukraine that happened the same day as Shoigu delivered his dubious remarks. Russia claimed it destroyed a military convoy and killed 200 Ukrainian troops.
Speaking Wednesday, Ukraine's independence day and the six-month anniversary of the start of Russia's invasion, Ukrainian President Voldymyr Zelenskyy said Russia would be held accountable for the attack on the rail station in Chaplyne in the central Dnipropetrovsk region.
The attack, an Iskander short-range ballistic missile strike, killed at least 25 civilians and wounded many more.
