ROSTOV-ON-DON. July 10 (Interfax) - Viktor Ageyev, who was detained in the Luhansk region, had been discharged from military service in spring 2016 and his testimony aired by a Ukrainian television channel is a fake, a spokesman for Russia's Southern Military District said.
"Viktor Ageyev enlisted in the army under contract over a year ago and was discharged to the reserves in spring 2016. He had nothing to do with the military service after that," the spokesman said.
There have been no active Russian servicemen in Luhansk, he added.
The spokesman also commented on Ageyev's testimony aired by a Ukrainian television channel. "First of all, one should pay attention to the 'uneven' cut of the so-called interview, which is a series of takes of Viktor Ageyev's words and phrases that suited the Ukrainian propagandists," he said.
"Despite what has been said in the video, there is no command of military unit 65246 in Novocherkassk. It is headquartered in another city," the spokesman said, adding that no commanders had ever met with Ageyev and signed a contract with him there.
"In the video aired by the Ukrainian TV channel, Viktor Ageyev recalled the number of his alleged military unit with difficulty, which would be impossible for any Russian serviceman, unlike a Ukrainian one," the spokesman said.
"In contrast to the Ukrainian army, the existent procedure of enlistment with the Russian Armed Forces under contract rules out a possibility of military unit commanders' entering into contracts with reserve officers, one of whom citizen Viktor Ageyev de facto is, on their own," the spokesman said.
Enlistment with the army under contract is preceded by a long procedure, which lasts for over a month, the spokesman said, adding that the prospective serviceman needs to file a request, documents need to be processed at enlistment offices, tests need to be conducted, and coaching at a training center needs to be done.
"This is why the takes aired by negligence of the Ukrainian Security Service feature Viktor Ageyev saying that he signed the so-called contract and received the rank of private 1st class in Luhansk, where there were no active Russian servicemen and are not any," the spokesman said.
"These and other errors leave no doubt that the video was hastily made by Ukrainian security services for the visit of U.S. officials to Ukraine," the spokesman said.
Russian citizen Ageyev detained by the Ukrainian army in the Luhansk region in June claimed to be a serviceman under contract. "I am a serviceman. Military unit 65246," Ageyev said in an interview with TSN. Tyzhden aired by the 1+1 television channel on Sunday.
According to the interview, Ageyev came to the Rostov region in March 2017 and was soon deployed to Donbas.
The militia of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) said, in turn, that Ageyev was an LPR citizen.