Russian media outlets have been circulating a report, along with excerpts from it, supposedly from the occupied city of Sudzha in the Kursk region. The report was allegedly produced by a so-called Finnish journalist, Kosti Heiskanen. These materials claim that Ukrainian forces committed atrocities against civilians, suffered “heavy losses,” and engaged in unlawful warfare tactics, including disguising themselves in civilian clothing or Russian military uniforms.
This is a fabricated story. The author of these claims, “Finnish journalist” Kosti Heiskanen, entered Sudzha alongside Russian troops. His report provides no credible evidence of Ukrainian war crimes, nor does it substantiate the allegations of Ukrainian soldiers changing into civilian or Russian military attire.
Moreover, Heiskanen is not a Finnish journalist at all. He is, in fact, a Russian propagandist and a pro-Kremlin war correspondent. His real name is Konstantin Lebedev, originally from Russia’s Leningrad region. He adopted the name Kosti Heiskanen in 2004 and has since been appearing in Russian media as a so-called Finnish journalist, often presenting negative portrayals of Finland.
During the ongoing war, this fake Finnish journalist traveled to Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories, producing reports from cities devastated by Russian forces, including Mariupol.
Heiskanen claims to have been a long-time member of the Union of Journalists in Finland. However, in reality, he was part of Toimittajaliitto, an organization founded by pro-Kremlin propagandist Johan Backman. This entity was directly managed from Russia.
Since mid-2022, Lebedev has been posing as a “correspondent” of the Finnish media outlet UMV-lehti (full name: Uusi Mita Vittualehti, or “What the f*ck news”), which was founded in Spain in 2014 by Ilja Janitskin. The chief editor of this so-called publication is Janus Putkonen, a Russian propagandist affiliated with “LNR/DNR.” This outlet has been recognized as racist and inciting hatred. Investigative outlet InformNapalm has reported that Putkonen’s projects in occupied territories receive direct financial support from Moscow. He is also responsible for vetting so-called foreign journalists who visit these occupied areas.
Lebedev has been photographed alongside the leader of the “DNR” militants, Denis Pushilin. In October 2024, Heiskanen gave an interview in which he criticized Finland, falsely claiming that it is not a democratic country.
Meanwhile, even Russian journalists themselves have debunked claims of Ukrainian war crimes in the Kursk region. For instance, the independent Russian media outlet Meduza published accounts from Sudzha residents who had lived under Ukrainian military control. These residents confirmed that Ukrainian forces had actually assisted them, providing food and supplies.
“Over those seven months, Ukrainian soldiers helped us at least six or seven times, delivering grains, flour, bread, and other essentials. Whenever they had something, they shared it with us. Meanwhile, from our own [Russian] troops, we received nothing at all,” one Sudzha resident was quoted as saying.
In contrast, Russian forces recently launched an airstrike using a guided bomb against an orphanage in Sudzha, where civilians had sought shelter.
The Kremlin’s propaganda machine is desperately trying to fabricate allegations of Ukrainian military atrocities against local populations in the Kursk region. However, the true source of suffering for Russian civilians is their own government, which initiated the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Russian propaganda earlier falsely claimed that nearly 8,500 violations of journalists’ rights were recorded in Ukraine over the past year.
Andriy Olenin
