Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sept. 1 during a conference in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, said that Russian forces are continually advancing in Ukraine and capturing new towns and villages daily. Specifically, the Russian leader told dignitaries and Krygyz and international media at the event: “The Sever [North] grouping of forces continues creating a security zone along the Russian-Ukrainian border in the border areas of Sumy region – it is 12 kilometers [7.5 miles] to Sumy, to Sumy’s ring road – and in Kharkiv region. Over the past month, 14 settlements have come under the control of Russian forces, including Kazachya Lopan, and yesterday – the city of Sviatohirsk. In the northeastern part of Kharkiv region, another encirclement of another enemy grouping, numbering up to 2,000 men, has been completed. The area of the resulting pocket is large – 460 square kilometers [178 square miles] – and includes 27 settlements.”JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. A Kremlin-generated transcript of Putin’s comments was posted here. None of Putin’s claims could be confirmed and most were provably false, Kyiv Post research into the former mid-grade KGB spy’s claims found. The most compelling recent evidence of the total absence of any Russian forces in Sviatohirsk was recorded on Sept. 5 by Ukrainian Brigadier General Andriy Biletsky, during a relaxed walk through town. Biletsky commands the Armed Forces of Ukraine’s (AFU) 3rd Army Corps, a major combat unit fighting in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region since March 2025. Sviatohirsk is in the center of 3rd Corps’ area of responsibility.Accompanied by a camera operator and two soldiers, an unhelmeted Biletsky is shown talking to a civilian as he walks across the T0521 road bridge across the Siverskyi Donets River to stand in front of the monastery. Aside from a pistol, he is unarmed. He states the town is fully under Ukrainian control, that no Russian soldiers are anywhere near where he is standing, that Ukrainian frontline positions are more than a dozen kilometers to the east, and that in Sviatohirsk: “There are no Russian soldiers anywhere.””Here you need to wear an armored vest, but you can walk around without any problems at all. As you can see, we have a quiet, pretty day here. Cars are driving around freely,” Biletsky said. “I have this to say to the Russian military-political leadership: You should just take off your clown noses and your multi-colored wigs. Stop making fools of yourselves.”