Ukraine warns Russia will step up joint offensive in spring
(Baonghean.vn) - Ukrainian intelligence warned on February 27 that Russia will intensify its influence campaign this spring to destabilize Ukraine and undermine international support for Kiev in its two-year war with Moscow.
Ukraine is struggling to counter Russian forces along much of the front line as Kiev faces challenges in replenishing its troops and the prospect of a cutoff of U.S. military aid. The Kremlin will step up its aggression by stepping up efforts to spread disinformation on social media, stoking conflict among Ukrainians and sowing doubt among Kiev’s allies about its chances of victory, according to the Ukrainian president’s intelligence committee.
“In the coming weeks, the enemy will make every effort to spread rhetoric aimed at undermining global security and trying to provoke conflicts – both in Ukraine and in other parts of the world where there is support for Ukraine,” the statement said.
In a statement issued by Kiev's domestic security and military intelligence agencies, the committee said the campaign would culminate at the end of May, when President Volodymyr Zelensky's five-year term ends. Elections in Ukraine have been suspended under martial law, which has been in effect since Russia launched the war. "The methods of this campaign are typical of Russian special services: to question the legitimacy of government decisions taken in Ukraine after May 20, to sow panic and despair, to artificially turn civilians against the military, to make us quarrel with our allies, to spread all kinds of 'conspiracy theories' in society," the statement said.
In addition, according to Ukrainian intelligence, Russian forces will try to take advantage of the situation to inflict losses on the battlefield in the East. President Zelensky warned earlier this week that Russian forces, which recently captured the strategic city of Avdiivka, could launch another offensive in late May or early summer./.
