The commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ Unmanned Systems Forces, Robert Madyar Brovdi, did not issue any threat to unseat President Volodymyr Zelensky. Pro-Kremlin media outlets are circulating an old video of Brovdi, repackaging it to imply a link to current peace discussions or to specific Ukrainian officials — a connection that does not exist.
Kremlin-aligned media and social-media accounts are once again trying to sow turmoil in Ukraine, this time by alleging that Robert Madyar Brovdi — the commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces — has threatened to “turn” the army against President Volodymyr Zelensky. According to the latest wave of pro-Kremlin messaging, Brovdi supposedly made the remark while weighing in on talks over a draft peace deal between Kyiv and Moscow. As “evidence,” propagandists are circulating a video clip of one of his past speeches.
Drugaya Ukraina claims that a statement is now “widely circulating” in Ukraine in which Robert Brovdi, the commander of the UAV Forces and better known by his call sign Madyar, allegedly warns that Ukrainian troops would deliver “serious consequences” to President Volodymyr Zelensky should he pursue any form of capitulation.
The video being circulated has no connection to the current peace-plan discussions or to any contemporary Ukrainian political figures. StopFake has verified that the clip is a trimmed segment from a livestream Brovdi hosted on his YouTube channel on September 2, 2022. Responding to a viewer’s question, Madyar spoke about the theoretical prospect of negotiations between Ukraine and Russia — a scenario he firmly rejected. At the time, he argued, the war had reached a “turning point” in Ukraine’s favor. His assessment proved prescient: within days, Ukrainian forces launched a successful counteroffensive in the Kharkiv region and, by October, liberated Kherson. It was in this context that he warned “everyone” against premature negotiations — a message now being misrepresented by pro-Kremlin channels.
“…By New Year, the nature of this war will change. We’re going to consolidate the turning point we’re witnessing now. One way or another, these bastards (Russia — ed.) will be forced to talk to us — and chances are, we won’t be ready to talk. And if the authorities decide to negotiate in a way that goes against the interests of the Ukrainian people, they’ll get a smack from us. Because a million of us will come back from the war — and the government should understand that we didn’t spend this time here for nothing. We will return. And if we see anything that threatens the integrity of the country, I’m certain trouble will follow for whoever is responsible,” Madyar said.
Moreover, pro-Kremlin outlets circulated only a clipped segment of Brovdi’s remarks — a deliberate choice. Just seconds later in the original livestream, he makes clear that he isn’t referring to “specific individuals” at all.
Earlier, StopFakerefuted Kremlin-driven claims that Ukraine was supposedly seeing a surge of anti-government unrest.
