The United States has acquired intelligence about a Russian plan to fabricate a pretext for an invasion of Ukraine by imitating an attack by Ukrainian military. Interfax reports this with reference to The New York Times, which refers to anonymous high-ranking representatives of the U.S. authorities.
"The plan – which the United States hopes to spoil by making public – involves staging and filming a fabricated attack by the Ukrainian military either on Russian territory or against Russian-speaking people in eastern Ukraine", - the article of The New York Times notes.
Russia, the representatives of the U.S. authorities said, intended to use the video to accuse Ukraine of genocide to justify an attack on Ukraine.
"Officials would not release any direct evidence of the Russian plan or specify how they learned of it, saying to do so would compromise their sources and methods", - the newspaper specified.
It is noted that the video is set to include those killed in the explosion, allegedly Ukrainian equipment, Turkish-made drones and actors playing Russian-speaking mourners. The U.S. authorities did not name who exactly in Russia was involved in planning this operation, having pointed only to the role of Russian intelligence.
"Key intelligence data was declassified in the hope of derailing this plan and convincing the allies (USA - ed.) of the severity of Russian plans", - the newspaper explains.
The newspaper writes that head of the U.S. intelligence community Avril Haines and other representatives of the U.S. authorities held a briefing on this topic for members of the Congress on Thursday. The USA also shared information with its allies.
As reported, shortly before, representative of CADLO as part of the Ukrainian delegation to the Trilateral Contact Group Serhiy Harmash warned about the likelihood of Moscow committing terrorist acts in CADLO to force Ukraine into the "Minsk-3" agreement.