(NewsNation) — Russian lawmakers have accused Ukraine of using “mutant” soldiers, supposedly created in a U.S. operated biological laboratory, to fight off Russian soldiers, according to reporting in The Daily Beast. This claim by Russia has no reason to be believed, said one former general.

“I think those Russian legislators must have been watching too many old cartoon reruns,” retired U.S. Gen. William Enyart said Tuesday on NewsNation’s “Rush Hour.” “You remember the old cartoon Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles? My kids used to watch it.”

Enyart said the U.S. does run bio labs in Ukraine, but they are used for tracking down and handling old chemical weapons, not for creating “mutant soldiers.” Oddly enough, this is not the first time Russians have made this claim, Enyart said.

“Russia has been making this claim since at least 2015,” he said. “…There is no truth to this ancient rumor at all.”

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which Russian leader Vladimir Putin still refers to as a “special military operation,” has not gone entirely to plan for the Russian army, as they have faced much fiercer resistance from Ukraine than they expected.

Enyart believes Russia pushing a story as outlandish as this one may be the country’s attempt to divert attention from all of the debacles their invasion has produced thus far.

“They’ve had terrific problems with their logistics and their supply lines and and soldiers not being able to perform the basic functions of a modern military, so clearly some of the blame is to the boogeyman and that is the United States of America,” Enyart said.

Russian missiles continued to bombard cities in eastern and southern Ukraine, as Russia continues to try and gain control of the eastern Donbas region, an area highly coveted by Putin.

Ukrainian forces are still narrowly holding on to dwindling territory in the Donetsk region, while other reports indicate Ukraine is preparing a counter-attack on Russian forces to retake areas near the key port city of Odesa.

In Kherson, a major Ukrainian city controlled by Russia since early in the war, Ukrainian forces appear to be preparing to launch an offensive there as well, attacking a key bridge in the region.

Serhiy Khlan, an official with the Ukrainian administration of the Kherson region, tacitly confirmed the strike on Ukrainian television, reporting “a precise hit” and explosion in the area of the bridge.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.