The British government on Saturday accused Russia of seeking to replace the Ukrainian government with a pro-Moscow one and said former Ukrainian MP Yevheniy Murayev was being considered as a potential candidate.
Murayev is the head of the small pro-Russian party Nashi, which currently has no seat in Ukraine’s parliament.
The British Foreign Office has named several other Ukrainian politicians it believes have links to Russian intelligence services.
It is unclear what means the UK believes Russia could use to form a friendly government in Kyiv.
The UK government made the claim based on an intelligence assessment, without providing supporting evidence. It comes at a time when Moscow and the West are at odds over Russian designs for Ukraine.
Foreign Minister Liz Truss said the news “casts light on the extent of Russia’s activity to overthrow Ukraine and is an insight into the Kremlin’s thinking.”
Truss called on Russia to “de-escalate, end its campaigns of aggression and disinformation, and pursue the path of diplomacy”, while reiterating Britain’s position that “any military attack Russia’s entry into Ukraine would be a major strategic mistake with serious costs.”
Britain has sent anti-tank weapons to Ukraine as part of an effort to bolster the country’s defenses against a potential Russian attack.
Amid diplomatic efforts to defuse the crisis, British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace is expected to meet Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu for talks in Moscow. There is no time for a meeting, which will be the first Anglo-Russian bilateral defense talks since 2013.
The United States has waged an active campaign in recent months to unify its European allies against a renewed Russian invasion of Ukraine. The White House called the UK government’s review “deeply concerned” and said it concurs with the duly elected Ukrainian government.
“This type of plot is very disturbing,” said National Security Council spokeswoman Emily Horne. “Ukrainian people have the right to determine their own future and we stand with our democratically elected partners in Ukraine.”
The assessment came as Biden spent Saturday at David’s presidential camp outside Washington discussing with his senior national security team the situation in Ukraine.
In a separate development, the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania plan to send US-made anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine, a move that the US fully endorsed on Saturday amid the backdrop of Tensions between Kyiv and Russia escalate.
The defense ministers of the three Baltic states said in a joint statement that they were “united in our commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of continued Russian aggression.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a tweet that Washington salutes the NATO nations and former Soviet republics “for their enduring support of Ukraine.”
“I have expedited and authorized and we fully endorse the delivery of defensive equipment @NATO Allied Estonia Latvia Lithuania is providing Ukraine to strengthen its defenses against gratuitous and irresponsible aggression responsibility of Russia,” Blinken said in another tweet.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov earlier this week described the West’s supply of weapons to Ukraine as extremely dangerous and said the shipments “do nothing to reduce tensions.”
Moscow has sent tens of thousands of troops near the Russian-Ukrainian border, leading to fears of an invasion. The West has rejected Moscow’s key demands – promises from NATO that Ukraine will never be added to a member, that no alliance weapons be deployed near Russia’s borders and that they be withdrawn. its forces from Central and Eastern Europe.
Friday’s meeting between Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov ended without a breakthrough. In light of the volatile security situation, the US State Department has considered a range of options to ensure the safety and security of the US Embassy in Kyiv and its staff by reducing the risk of diplomatic presence here.
The defense ministers of the Baltic states said in their statement that Estonia will provide Javelin anti-tank weapons while Latvia and Lithuania are sending Stinger anti-aircraft missiles and other related equipment to strengthen their military capabilities. Kyiv’s defense. It is not clear when the weapons and equipment will be sent to Ukraine.
“Today, Ukraine is taking the lead in separating Europe from the military conflict with Russia. Let’s face it, the war in Ukraine is ongoing and it’s important that we support Ukraine in any way to do so. they can fend off the aggressor,” said Estonian Defense Minister Kalle Laanet.
Estonia is also seeking German approval to send Soviet-made gunboats, which once belonged to East Germany, to Ukraine. Estonia acquired artillery from non-NATO Finland, which subsequently purchased from Germany’s military surplus supply in the 1990s.
The German government said on Friday that it was considering Estonia’s request for the delivery of artillery systems to Ukraine but did not give a deadline for a decision. Berlin said it plans to coordinate the resolution of the issue with Finland, which received a similar request for approval from Estonia.
Berlin regularly demands a say when arms sold by Germany are transferred to third countries. But some recent reports that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s cabinet could prevent Estonia from transferring weapons to Kyiv, highlighting divisions in the West’s response to the Ukraine crisis.
Ukraine’s Deputy Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba alleges that Germany has not shown adequate support for Ukraine.
Kuleba said in a Twitter post that the arms transfer issue and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock’s comments expressing skepticism about cutting Russia off from the SWIFT global payments system “do not correspond to the level of importance given to the Russian Federation.” our relationship and the current security situation.”
Also on Saturday, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry summoned the German ambassador to protest against a recently circulated video in which the head of the German navy says Ukraine will not take back the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed. 2014, and Russian President Vladimir Putin deserves “respect.”
Vice Admiral Kay-Achim Schoenbach’s comments sparked surprise and swift response in Berlin. Late on Saturday, the head of Germany’s navy submitted his resignation, saying he wanted to prevent further damage from his “inconsiderate claims” in India.
The US State Department is currently warning US citizens not to visit Ukraine due to the coronavirus pandemic but is also advising them to reconsider travel there due to potential Russian aggression.
Speculation that an announcement of a US diplomatic presence in Ukraine could be imminent has increased since the embassy in Kyiv announced it would hold a virtual town hall meeting on the security situation. with American citizens in Ukraine on Tuesday.
Discussions on the matter have been ongoing for some time, but Blinken reviewed contingency plans with the embassy’s security team when he visited Kyiv on Wednesday, officials said.
Officials stressed that no decision has been made and that a full evacuation is not yet being considered. One possible scenario is ordering the families of American employees to leave the country while allowing non-essential employees to leave voluntarily at government expense, they said.
