Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Tuesday (June 20) that Russia had information that Ukraine was planning to attack Russia-annexed Crimea. Shoigu warned that if Ukraine takes any such step, Russia would retaliate. Shoigu claimed that Ukraine was planning to attack Crimea with US and British long-range missiles.
Russia captured Crimea in 2014. But it considers the peninsula to be outside of the scope of its “special military operation” in Ukraine. The Russian attack this time is focused on eastern and southern Ukraine.
Ukraine says that it is fighting a war against a colonial conquest. It says it wants to reclaim all of its territory, including Crimea.
Shoigu attended a meeting of military officials in Moscow. He said in the meeting that Moscow had info about Ukraine planning to attack Crimea with US-supplied HIMARS long-range rocket systems and with British Storm Shadow cruise missiles.
Russia issues warning
“The use of these missiles outside the zone of our special military operation would mean that the United States and Britain would be fully dragged into the conflict and would entail immediate strikes on decision-making centres in Ukraine,” said Shoigu.
Ukrainian generals and politicians have said many times they do not announce their military plans ahead of time.
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Shoigu claimed that since June 4, Ukrainian armed forces had carried out 263 attacks on Russian troops.
“Thanks to the smart and selfless actions of our units all of them (the attacks) have been repelled, the enemy has not accomplished its goals,” said Shoigu.
Ukraine says it has recaptured eight villages in the early stages of its counteroffensive and a defence official has promised that Kyiv’s “biggest blow” lay ahead despite tough resistance from Moscow’s troops.
Russia attacked Ukraine in February last year. After gains in the early months of the conflict, Russian forces had to withdraw from large swathes of land in the face of a Ukrainian counteroffensive.
After the Russian invasion, the United States pushed for military support for Ukraine and quickly forged an international coalition to support Kyiv and coordinated aid from dozens of countries.
Russia has accused the West of directly waging war against it by providing weapons to Ukraine.
In recent weeks drone attacks have struck cities in Russia and targets in Crimea, but Kyiv has not claimed responsibility for the incidents.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met African leaders just a few days ago and ruled out negotiations with Russia.
“I clearly said several times at our meeting that to allow any negotiations with Russia now that the occupier is on our land is to freeze the war, to freeze pain and suffering,” Zelensky told reporters after meeting several leaders including South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa.
(With inputs from agencies)
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