The British Foreign Secretary, Liz Truss, has accused Russia this Saturday of trying establish a related regime in Ukraine for which I would even have a specific name to be the new president: Yevhen Murayev.
“Information released today sheds light on the extent of Russian activity seeking to subvert Ukraine and gives an idea of how the Kremlin thinks“Truss said in an official statement. “Russia must de-escalate and put an end to their campaigns of aggression and disinformation and take the path of diplomacy”, he stressed.
The text provides details on Russia’s alleged plan to impose a new government, although it does not specify whether an invasion of Russian forces is necessary for this.
“As the UK and our partners have repeatedly said, any Russian military incursion into Ukraine would be a huge strategic mistake with serious consequencesTruss added.
Murayev, the name cited by London, is a media owner who was a deputy until a change in the electoral legislation left his party without representation by not reaching the minimum of 5% in the 2019 elections.
In addition, four other Ukrainian politicians are named who would be linked to the Russian secret services and assures that some of them collaborated with Russian agents in the preparation of the invasion plan. Among them is Mikola Azarov, prime minister with former president Viktor Yanukovych, overthrown in 2014.
Azarov then fled to Russia to set up a government in exile despite the red arrest warrant issued at Interpol by the Ukrainian government for crimes such as embezzlement and appropriation of public funds.
It is also mentioned to Vladimir Sivkovich, former ‘number two’ of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, sanctioned this week by the United States for collaborating with Russian secret services. It is also cited Serhiy Arbuzov and Andriy Kluyev, former deputy prime ministers with Yanukovych.
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson, has announced that he will give instructions to the Defense Minister, Ben Wallace, to travel to Moscow and meet with his Russian counterpart, as reported by the British chain ‘Sky News’.
“(Johnson) is expected to tell Defense Secretary Ben Wallace to accept an invitation to meet with the Russian defense minister in Moscow in the coming days,” added the chain.
The British Prime Minister sees the crisis around Ukraine as “the greatest test for the unity and determination of the West and the Atlantic Alliance in decades.”
Russia’s response
The Russian Foreign Ministry has urged the UK to “cease the provocations” and stop spread “nonsense”, in a first reaction to the British accusations.
“The misinformation spread by the United Kingdom Foreign Office is further proof that it is precisely the NATO countries, with the Anglo-Saxons at the forefront, those dedicated to escalating tensions around Ukraine“, The Kremlin has pointed out, according to the Russian news agency Sputnik.
In this context, Russia has accused NATO of increasing military activity near its borders, perceiving this fact as “a threat to its national security” and has defended the “right to move forces within its own territory as it sees fit.”
US sources would have confirmed the information, originating in the British secret services, according to the newspaper ‘The New York Times’ citing two official sources.
A spokeswoman for the US National Security Council, Emily J. Horne, has described this type of “plot” as “very worrying”. “The Ukrainian people have the sovereign right to decide their own future. We support our democratically elected partners in Ukraine,” he said.
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
