The video appears to show the moment Russian and Ukrainian troops on the snow-covered front pause fighting to sing a famous World War II love song.
In the recordings, which have not been independently verified, the Russians shout a salute and the Ukrainians respond before Vladimir Putin's soldiers begin singing the legendary Soviet tune Katyusha.
In a snowy forest, two Russian soldiers appear to shout the first two lines of the song.
They sang: “Apple and pear trees bloomed,
“Mists flew over the river.”
The video appears to show the moment Russian and Ukrainian troops on the snow-covered front pause fighting to sing a famous World War II love song
If the video is authentic, the third and fourth lines come with a response from the Ukrainians:
“Katyusha went to a river bank,
“On a high and steep river bank.”
The short video then ends.
The atmospheric song is known from World War II, when both Russians and Ukrainians fought on the same side.
The clip spread quickly on social media in Russia, but less so in Ukraine.
If correct, it reflects the kind of seasonal exchanges between combatants that may have occurred in World War I and World War II, such as the Christmas Truce on the Western Front in 1914.
It appears that the two sides' positions are extremely close, some would even say too close given the modern weaponry.
It would also show that they risk their lives and the wrath of their commanders by revealing their locations to the enemy.
Pending verification, there may be suspicion that the video is a Russian propaganda stunt, but it is a song that opposing forces would be familiar with.
Nevertheless, Katyusha was used primarily by the Russian side in the current war.
Some Ukrainian prisoners of war complained that their captors forced them to sing it.
A Russian post highlighting the video saw Ukrainians singing the song as evidence of hope that they could still be “de-zombified” by succumbing to Russian culture.
Putin's twisted doctrine falsely claims that Ukrainians were subjected to “Nazification.”
“The song Katyusha is sung by the soldiers of the Russian army, and Ukrainian soldiers also sing along,” the post says.
But Katyusha was also a song that Ukrainians could identify with during World War II, when it was used by Stalin to inspire – and propagate – his troops, who came from all 15 republics of the USSR, including Russians and Ukrainians.
Military expert Vladyslav Shurygin, who highlighted the footage, said: “The song is a folk song. Katyusha was sung in Soviet times both in Russia and in the southern and southeastern regions of Ukraine.”
Old footage shows a Soviet-era Red Army band playing the song. The band probably consisted of both Russians and Ukrainians.
At the end of the video, composer Matvey Blanter is led onto the stage and greeted by the Soviet choir
What exactly happened to this song in the video is currently unknown.
But Shurygin said: “Most likely, the Ukrainian singers who willingly began singing Katyusha were mobilized men, some of them 50 years old.” [or more].
“You remember Soviet songs well, and this one was one of the most popular, and not a single wedding in the now forcibly separated parts of a once united country was complete without it.
“Something about it seemed symbolic – people singing the same songs in the same language should find understanding and a way to live together.”
Shurygin spoils the moment of unity by declaring: “We have to create something.” [Volodymyr] Zelensky remembers Katyusha, well – with the help of Grad.
“Then perhaps he will also understand where Ukraine is headed.”
Old footage shows a Soviet-era Red Army band playing the song. The band probably consisted of both Russians and Ukrainians.
At the end of the video, composer Matvey Blanter is led onto the stage and greeted by the Soviet choir.
He was Jewish and was born in what is now Russia's Bryansk region during Tsarist times, when it was part of the Chernihiv Governorate.
Chernihiv is now part of Ukraine.
The text comes from the Soviet poet Mikhail Isakowski, who was born in the Smolensk region of Russia.
The ballad tells of a Russian girl, Katyusha, who sings for her beloved soldier who is far away at war.
His last lines are: “He should protect the motherland,
“And Katyusha will keep love safe.”