Is the enemy's information officer speaking for us? A storm of criticism online over Arestovych’s pro-Russian statement

Is the enemy's information officer speaking for us? A storm of criticism online over Arestovych’s pro-Russian statement

On the eve of the incident, Russia committed a horrific terrorist attack — it struck an apartment building in Dnipro with a missile, causing dozens of deaths and injuries.

In Russia they immediately began blaming Ukraine for their crime, claiming that the horrific destruction was supposedly caused by air defense forces attempting to shoot down an enemy missile.

Unexpectedly, this version, in sync with Russian propaganda, was picked up and began to be circulated by Ukrainian blogger and military analyst Oleksiy Arestovych, who previously called himself an adviser to the Office of the President of Ukraine. The complete alignment of Arestovych’s statements with the enemy’s narratives and their broadcasting at a time when hundreds of people in Dnipro continue to sift through the rubble of the destroyed building searching for victims and survivors provoked outrage among Ukrainians.

The day before, while rescue and search operations at the site of the building destroyed by Russia in Dnipro were in full swing, Arestovych stated on the broadcast of Russian human rights lawyer Mark Feygin’s channel that the apartment building had allegedly been hit by a Russian missile that had been shot down by Ukrainian air defenses.

This claim remarkably echoed Russian statements about this latest RF crime against Ukraine. Russians and pro-Russian Telegram channels, which had earlier been jubilant over new deaths, injuries, and destruction in Ukraine, immediately seized on Arestovych’s thesis to justify their terrorism: allegedly, here is an entire adviser to the OP who confirmed that Russia is “not to blame,” and that Ukraine is killing its own citizens.

Whether deliberate or unconscious, Arestovych’s playing into the enemy’s propaganda provoked fury among Ukrainians, including Ukrainian bloggers, politicians, and soldiers.

Thus, the mayor of Dnipro, Borys Filatov, who was practically on the scene of the terrible terrorist attack when Arestovych’s statement came out, did not hold back either his emotions or his words.

“From the first day of the war I said that Arestovych is a self-absorbed animal and a sewer mouth. But someone in the OP is clearly betting on him... Sorry, I couldn’t hold back, but the SBU and counterintelligence must react,” Filatov wrote.

Later he mentioned Arestovych again — with a cooler head.

Filatov noted that the “OP adviser”’s statement about an air defense missile has nothing to do with reality.

“About Arestovych. Closing the topic. A whole commander of the Air Forces was forced to refute his performance. I state honestly, as before the Lord God, the missile strike was direct. No air defense,” Filatov emphasized.

At the same time, he noted that Arestovych “has been playing with fire for a long time,” but that he is useful to someone.

“Oleksiy is a highly educated, talented, informed, and charismatic person. And precisely because of that he is evil. A charming Woland. From people like him come either brilliant swindlers, or superb traveling salesmen, or preachers. I said that he’d been playing with it repeatedly. Both publicly and privately. Including on Bankova. We live in a free country where everyone has the right to their own opinion, but he voices his stories as an OFFICIAL PERSON, and some observe his ‘childish antics’ with a smile. Because it is always more convenient to keep understandable scoundrels close than decent, professional, but inconvenient people,” Filatov wrote.

Defender of Ukraine and head of the NGO Association of Public Protection of Entrepreneurs Mykhailo Skliar called Arestovych a “stupid-headed scoundrel” and emphasized how brilliantly he worked in the enemy’s interests.

“The Office of the President worked brilliantly with the sewer mouth of its adviser. I wonder, will they throw this creature out of the information space or will he continue to wash the brains of our inept compatriots to the delight of the kcp?,” Skliar rhetorically asked, attaching screenshots showing Arestovych quoted by hostile resources.

According to the member of parliament of Ukraine of the 8 convocation, the idiocy of Arestovych’s statement could have remained his personal problem if not for one “but” that turns it into a problem for the state authorities and Ukraine as a whole.

Armed Forces officer Anatoliy Shtefan emphasized that after his statement Arestovych became a star of anti-Ukrainian publics and Russian propaganda media.

“All of the rashn-propaganda sincerely applauds one of the advisers and spokesmen who simply lost the ground beneath his feet. And how we now look before the world community. Just bravo. Oleksiy has been playing with it for a long time,” the officer wrote.

Journalist Serhiy Auslender is also convinced that Arestovych’s statement dealt a severe blow to Ukraine. He also pointed out several strange aspects that cast doubt on the idea that this statement was accidental.

“With a high degree of probability he could not have known whether that missile was shot down or not. If the air defenses did not provide that information, if the Ministry of Defense did not provide it, if rescue crews were still clearing the rubble, how could he have known?” the journalist wonders.

Furthermore, Arestovych could not have been unaware of the consequences of his statement.

“Even if it had been shot down, even if he knew that for sure, what is the point of telling it? He, as a very, very not-dumb person, should have understood what a gift he was giving to Russian propaganda, what despair his words could sow in Ukrainian society (air defense is failing, and only hits its own), and what awful s***storm would explode. So what’s the point of his words — to boost Feygin’s and his own views? But they already have plenty there,” Auslender said in disbelief.

In any case, such statements from a person who claims official status are a bad signal for the Ukrainian authorities.

“If Arestovych were a blogger/coach/psychologist and so on through his numerous achievements and professions, he could make any statements. Any. But he is an OFFICIAL PERSON, a civil servant. And, in theory, he is obliged to coordinate his position with his employer. Two possible conclusions follow. Either it was coordinated (then again the question — why?), or they have completely lost control there and this is bad for a country at war,” the journalist writes.

“And however this story ends, let us not forget — the missile was Russian, the war that Russia unleashed continues, and any s***storm in Ukrainian society only plays into its hands. So one must be all the more careful with information and making various ‘statements,’” Auslender added.

Investigative journalist Denys Bihus is convinced that such playing into the enemy’s hands during wartime should be grounds for revocation of citizenship.

“Arestovych is a finished scumbag. File a petition to strip him of his citizenship, or what.. Stripping citizenship for the reason ‘what the f*ck kind of Ukrainian are you,’” he wrote.

Blogger and civic activist Serhiy Sternenko also pointed out how well Arestovych’s statement fit into the framework of Russian propaganda — and recalled the “combat feats” of the “OP adviser” according to his own version.

“This was his 34 combat sortie onto the front of the information war. This time Oleksiy helped Russian propaganda,” Sternenko stated.

“This is a raging f***up... After the Air Force spokesman announced that the missile that hit the building in Dnipro was an Kh-22 launched from a Tu-22M3 bomber, ARESTOVYCH stated that our air defenses shot that missile down, therefore it destroyed the building!!! He absolutely repeated the Russian narrative!” — exclaimed politician and civic activist Oleksandr Aronets.

In his view, Arestovych’s statement can only be interpreted one way: as deliberate action against the state in the enemy’s interests.

“He simply acted as a spokesman for the Russian IPSO... If government representatives are reading me — do something about him. Because he is an internal enemy,” Aronets emphasized.

Defender of Ukraine Serhiy Filimonov did not hold back his emotions either.

“Arestovych in the vast majority of cases is simply a f***ing liar. Today he is also a finished moron. Semi-f*g,” he snapped.

Defender of Mariupol, chief of staff and first deputy commander of the Azov special purpose regiment of the National Guard of Ukraine Bohdan Krotevych, who endured Russian captivity, is convinced that Arestovych has come to believe in his own impunity.

“What do you call a situation when an OP adviser helps the enemy in the information war? Total impunity,” the fighter with the call sign “Tavr” noted.

Former Minister of Social Policy Pavlo Rozenko, by contrast, was surprised by Ukrainians’ outrage over Arestovych’s statement.

“Arestovych is an a**hole and an anti-Ukrainian FSB monster? You only realized this today??? Seriously???” he wrote.

Meanwhile, while the OP considers what to do with their “adviser” after his brilliant sortie onto the information battlefield on the enemy’s side, Ukrainians are looking for preventive ways to stop Arestovych from generating new “revelations.”