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A soldier takes position in a village controlled by Russian separatists
Photo: Alexei Alexandrov / dpa
According to the US government, Russia is working on creating a pretext for an invasion of Ukraine.
"We have information indicating that Russia has already deployed a group of agents to conduct a false flag operation in eastern Ukraine," a US official said Friday.
"The agents are trained in urban warfare and the use of explosives to commit acts of sabotage against Russia's own proxy forces."
"Russia is laying the groundwork to have the option of inventing a pretext for an invasion, including through acts of sabotage and intelligence operations," the government official said.
The goal is to accuse Ukraine of "preparing an imminent attack on Russian forces in eastern Ukraine."
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The Russian armed forces plan to start these activities a few weeks before a military invasion, which could start "between mid-January and mid-February," the government official said.
In view of a massive Russian troop deployment on the border with Ukraine, the West fears that Russia is currently preparing an invasion of the neighboring country after annexing Crimea in 2014.
The Kremlin categorically denies this.
At the same time, he is demanding agreements from the USA and NATO that would ban the eastward expansion of NATO and the establishment of US military bases in countries in the former Soviet sphere of influence.
Talks between the US and Russia, a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council and talks within the framework of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) brought no breakthrough this week.
Zelenskyj proposes three-way talks with Biden and Putin
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed a tripartite talk with US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Zelenskyy's office manager Andrei Yermak told the US think tank Atlantic Council on Friday that the president had suggested to Biden that a tripartite meeting be held "perhaps via video conference".
"We are still waiting for a reaction from the Russian side," Yermak said.
"But our American partners have responded to our proposal with interest." Only on Tuesday did Zelenskyj call for a new summit meeting in the so-called Normandy format with Russia, Germany and France.
mfh/AFP