U.S. Accuses Russia Of Preparing 'False-Flag' Operation In Ukraine
According to RFE/RL, The White House has accused Russia of sending saboteurs into eastern Ukraine in order to stage an incident that could provide a pretext for an invasion if Moscow's security demands are not met.
Spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters on January 14 that U.S. intelligence indicates that Russia "has prepositioned a group of operatives to conduct a false-flag operation in Ukraine. The operatives are trained in urban warfare and using explosives to conduct acts of sabotage.”
The comments come after a week of high-stakes talks in Geneva, Brussels, and Vienna between U.S. and European officials with Russian diplomats who have essentially demanded a whole-scale reorganization of Europe’s security structure.
Russia has deployed nearly 100,000 troops to areas along Ukraine’s borders, prompting Western intelligence officials to warn that Moscow could be poised to conduct a new invasion of Ukraine.
"Our intelligence also indicates that Russian influence actors are already starting to fabricate Ukrainian provocations in state and social media to justify a Russian intervention and sow division in Ukraine,” Psaki said.
"The Russian military plans to begin these activities several weeks before a military invasion, which could begin between mid-January and mid-February," she added.
In Moscow, the U.S. intelligence assessment, which was earlier announced by unnamed U.S. officials, was derided.
"Until now, all these statements have been unfounded and have not been confirmed by anything," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted by state news agencies as saying.
As the United States and its Western allies have raised alarms over a massive Russian troop buildup near Ukraine, Russia has asked for written guarantees that the NATO military alliance will not admit former Soviet states such as Ukraine, among other demands.
Washington and its NATO allies held three rounds of talks with Russia in an attempt to defuse the situation, but while expressing openness to dialogue they have made clear that NATO's open-door policy for sovereign states is not negotiable.
Moscow, which has denied that it is planning to invade Ukraine, has said it could not wait indefinitely for a written Western response to its security demands.
Earlier, a U.S. official who discussed the alleged “false-flag” operation said the U.S. intelligence was based on intercepted communications and observations of the movements of people.
