Russia is using bombing-trained operatives to fabricate an excuse to justify Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a U.S. official said on Friday, January 14th.
Jake Salivan, the national security adviser to US President Joe Biden, said on Thursday that Russia was “laying the groundwork for a fabricated pretext for the invasion.”
“We have information that Russia has previously deployed a team of operatives to carry out a sabotage operation in eastern Ukraine,” a US official said on Friday.
“Operators have been trained in urban warfare and the use of explosives to sabotage Russian-backed forces,” said an official, who wished to remain anonymous.
The official said Russia had at the same time stepped up a disinformation campaign on social media, including posting allegations of violations by Ukraine and escalation of tensions by the West.
The official revealed that, according to the information in his possession, Russia has already begun work on fabricating provocations to justify Russia’s invasion and deepen the divisions in Ukraine.
Sullivan told reporters that Russia had used similar tactics in 2014, when it seized the Crimea owned by Ukraine, and is now preparing to do the same.
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