NATO warns that Russia stages attacks to justify the invasion of Ukraine

The OTAN expressed his concern on Thursday about the possibility that Russia stage an attack to have a justification to invade Ukrainewhile the Ukrainian government and pro-Russian separatist militias accuse each other of carrying out ceasefire-violating attacks in eastern Ukraine.

“We are concerned that Russia is trying to stage a pretext for an armed attack against Ukraine”declared the allied secretary general, Jens Stoltenbergat a press conference at the end of a meeting of ministers of the OTAN held in Brussels.

The politician stressed the possibility of Moscow provoking “a false flag operation” in eastern Ukrainedesigned to look like an attack on Russians or Russian-speakers in Ukraine as an excuse to enter Ukrainian territory.

In this regard, he stressed that there have been “attempts to stage a pretext, false flag operations, so that they provide an excuse to invade Ukraine.”

“I can’t go into the details of the different reports, but that’s why we’re monitoring what’s going on so closely and why the allies of the OTAN they have exposed Russian actions, Russian plans and Russian efforts when it comes to disinformation. Because we think that makes it more difficult for them to act and invade Ukraine”he pointed.

In any case, he stated that there is no “clarity” or “certainty” about Moscow’s intentions.

“We don’t know what will happen, but what What we know is that Russia has amassed the greatest force we have seen in Europe in decades in and around Ukraine, and we also know that there are many Russian spies operating in Ukraine; they are present in Donbas (eastern Ukraine controlled by pro-Russian separatists),” he commented.

In fact, Stoltenberg noted that Russia has “enough troops and enough capabilities around Ukraine to launch a full-fledged invasion at little or no notice.”

The secretary general, once again, urged Moscow to withdraw the deployed forces and to get involved in the dialogue.

Despite the Kremlin’s declarations about a withdrawal of its forces, Stoltenberg He said that they do not see a de-escalation, but rather that the military build-up continues.

The Ukrainian government and pro-Russian separatist militias backed by Moscow accused each other today of violating the ceasefire regime in eastern Ukraine.

The Defense Ministry of Ukraine denounced that this Wednesday the pro-Russians violated the ceasefire on 29 occasions, without any casualties in the ranks of the government forces.

Meanwhile, the self-proclaimed people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk assured that the Ukrainian Army attacked the surroundings of nine towns under their control with mortar fire, according to the agency of the pro-Russian separatists DAN.

Asked about it, the US Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin said the information is “certainly worrying” and that they are still “gathering the details”.

“We said for a while that the Russians could do something like that to justify a military conflict,” he noted, “so we will be following him very closely,” he added.

He insisted that Washington will be vigilant against possible operations, “in which Russia prepares a dramatic event to justify an attack”, something he said they have seen Moscow “do in the past”.

Austin also warned that Russia, instead of withdrawing the troops accumulated next to Ukraine, is bringing them closer “little by little” to that border, and assured that it is even supplying the contingents with supplies of blood.

“You certainly don’t if you’re getting ready to pack up and go home,” pointed.

made it clear that Russia continues to build up troops around Ukraine, in Crimea, Belarus and the Black Sea, According to what he said, there are already some 150,000 soldiers, but he considered that “there is still time and space for diplomacy to work.”

If not, it will be clear to the whole world that Putin will start a war with diplomatic options still on the table. he claimed.

Russia has announced that this Thursday it will transmit to the US its reaction to the US response to the security demands raised by Moscow, but Stoltenberg, asked if NATO also expects to receive this Thursday the response to the initiatives that the Alliance sent to Moscow, said that they are waiting for the answer from the Kremlin.

“Unfortunately, I think that what we are seeing now is a kind of new normal for European security, because we have seen for many years this trend where Russia disputes fundamental principles of European security and is willing to use force, as it has done. against Georgia and Ukraine, but also to threaten the use of force to intimidate countries in Europe,” he said.