![]() 'The operatives are trained in urban warfare and in using explosives to carry out acts of sabotage against Russia’s proxy forces,' she said. Operatives had already been deployed, said White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki on Jan. Last month, for example, officials in Washington said the US had collected intelligence about a Russian plan to fabricate an attack by the Ukrainian military, providing a pretext to launch an invasion. Yevhen Murayev, 45, a former Ukrainian MP, similarly scoffed at the notion that he had been picked out by the Kremlin.īut Liz Truss, UK foreign secretary, said that the revelation 'shines a light on the extent of Russian activity designed to subvert Ukraine and is an insight into Kremlin thinking.'Īt other times, officials in Washington have warned of a possible 'false flag' attack. Last month, the UK named another pro-Russian figure that Moscow was apparently intent on elevating to a position of power. The name was just the latest in a stream of intelligence to emerge about Putin's apparent intentions. ![]() 'As long as they feel they control them, that seems to be enough.' 'Putin has not distinguished himself in Ukraine over the last eight years and to name someone who has no stature is not implausible at all,' he said. In Crimea, the Kremlin picked little known Sergei Aksyonov to run its administration after annexing the territory in 2014. ambassador to Ukraine and senior director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center, said Russia had form. ![]() Regional experts said his apparent unsuitability might make him perfect for Moscow's plans. But he said his run had been so unpopular that he was chased out of television studio in Kiev. Tsaryov, 51, was a lawmaker with the Party of Regions, led by Viktor Yanukovych who fled to Russia in 2014 during a pro-Western uprising.Īfter Moscow annexed Crimea, he ran for president on a pro-Russian ticket. I'm not even invited to speak on state TV because I’m not important enough. 'This is a pretty funny situation,' he told the newspaper. Tsaryov, who said he abandoned his political career in 2015 and now runs three Soviet-style wellness clinics on the Black Sea, laughed off the idea. The claim was received with a mix of incredulity and alarm in Ukraine. intelligence officials believe the Kremlin could is preparing a puppet government in Ukraine, information they shared with allies in the 'five eyes' of the US, UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.Ī Western official told the Financial Times Moscow 'might position Oleg Tsaryov, and others, in leadership roles as part of this effort.' The latest example concerns reports that U.S. White House and State Department briefings have turned combative, as skeptical journalists quiz press secretaries on why they should believe claims offered without evidence.Īnd they run the risk of burning intelligence sources and methods, said the former official. Vladmir Putin on Tuesday said he was pulling back troops from the Ukrainian border, but President Joe Biden said 150,000 remained in a threatening position 'And when you do that, there's there's upsides but there's also some potential downsides.' 'These reports are coming out at the speed of relevance rather than at the speed of analysis because they're trying to keep up with a news cycle,' said a former senior government official. It follows briefings by Biden administration officials dripping out scoops about Putin's plans: That he plans to invade on Wednesday that Russia has already prepositioned special forces for a false-flag operation and that it has picked the leaders it wants for a puppet regime.ĭiplomatic and security sources told the strategy was designed to deny Vladimir Putin, the former KGB officer-turned-president, the space to justify an invasion. Oleg Tsaryov, now a sanatorium director, laughed off the idea that he was a pawn in Vladimir Putin's grand plan, saying that he was simply not important enough.īut the episode offers an insight into the information war being waged between Washington and Russia over Ukraine. Washington fired another shot in the information war with Russia, it emerged on Tuesday, with American officials claiming the Kremlin wanted to install a little known former politician as part of a puppet regime in Ukraine.
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