Social media users circulated a video showing how Ukrainians differentiate between native residents and Russians who speak the Ukrainian language. Bulgarian investigative journalist Kristo Grozev shared a clip of a Ukrainian citizen approaching Russian soldiers and asking them to say the word "palyanitsa," which refers to a type of bread known to Ukrainians. Grozev remarked, "A Ukrainian approaches unknown soldiers and shouts at them to say 'palyanitsa'; after realizing they are Russians, he tells them they cannot stop him from filming because the Ukrainian constitution allows it."
In the video, the Ukrainian citizen states, "I don't understand who you are... Glory to Ukraine!" When there is no response, he insists, "Say 'palyanitsa'." The Russian soldier replies, "Don't film," prompting the Ukrainian to respond angrily, "Why can't I film? Who told you I can't film? The Ukrainian constitution allows me to film; I'm in my home, so why can't I film? Look, I want to film the trees."
Grozev also shared another video of a Ukrainian soldier explaining to local citizens how to test suspected Russians by having them pronounce the word. "Palyanitsa" is a bread made by Ukrainians for welcoming guests, and its pronunciation differs from the Russian version, which tends to mix the letters and change some sounds. Notably, Russian TV presenter Olga Skabeeva, who supports President Vladimir Putin, failed to pronounce the word correctly, saying "balyanitsa," which in Ukrainian means "strawberry."
Additionally, Ukrainians have begun using a new test for suspected Russians based on the commonly used Ukrainian phrase "ukrzalinytsia," meaning "nonsense" or "rubbish."
Earlier, the Ukrainian army warned of a "trick" being employed by the Russian military in their ongoing operations on Ukrainian territory since Thursday. Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi posted on Facebook that the Russian army resorted to a ruse aimed at misleading Ukrainian forces by raising the Ukrainian flag on its military equipment. He noted that such instances have been observed in various locations, including Nova Basan in Kyiv and along the Krasnoostrov Nizhin highway, as well as in the Chernihiv region.
The Ukrainian military official continued, "There have been cases where the enemy raised a white flag on its vehicles claiming to surrender, only to open fire upon approaching Ukrainian military positions."
