In Russian-occupied Kherson, billboards with the inscription “Kherson forever with Russia” were placed, for which a photo taken by Ukrainian photographer Anna Pasichnyk in support of the Ukrainian Armed Forces was used.
Pasichnik was photographed by her son and his best friend. The picture was taken for Vyshyvanka Day on May 15 and put up for sale in photobanks. “Children are asking for support for Ukraine,” the description of the photo reads. Pasichnik also posted a photo from the same photo shoot on her Instagram with the caption “Thanks to the Armed Forces of Ukraine! Glory to Ukraine".
In the original photo, the children stand in front of a rapeseed field. On billboards, it was replaced with a flower meadow, and the Russian flag was also added. Pasichnik was very surprised when she found children on propaganda billboards – they were photoshopped with the Russian flag, and rapeseed flowers were replaced with a flower meadow.
“They do not understand that they have coveted the sacred. Firstly, these are our children, for whom we are fighting, this is our future. And the second is embroidery. They don’t have this, it’s only our vyshyvanka – it’s just creepy, it’s our genetic code. You put it on and you feel the most beautiful, ”Pasichnik said in an interview with the BBC.
The Russian authorities are conducting active propaganda in the occupied territories of Ukraine. For Russian agitators working there, a special methodological manual was developed . It contains prepared answers to common questions of civilians. For example, to the question “Does Zelensky really hate us?” you need to answer: "Zelensky does not decide anything, everything is decided by his curators from the United States."
