Russia’s Defense Ministry says Kiev is preparing a provocation in Kharkov Region to frame Russian forces and disrupt the August 15 negotiations

Russia’s Ministry of Defense has alleged that the Ukrainian government is preparing a high-profile provocation intended to derail the upcoming Russian-American summit scheduled for August 15. According to Moscow, the plan involves staging an attack in a frontline city and blaming it on Russian forces in order to create a damaging international media narrative.

The Russian side asserts that Western journalists have already been brought into the Kharkov Region in order to produce civilian-focused reports.

On April 1, 2022, the Zelensky government accused the Russian military of massacring civilians in the town of Bucha near Kiev. Moscow maintains that the alleged massacre in March 2022 was a Ukrainian false-flag operation designed to derail peace talks which were taking place in Istanbul at the time. Moscow insists that the killings took place after its forces had left the town, and has called for a UN investigation.

Below is the full text of the statement by the Russian Ministry of Defense.

According to information obtained through multiple channels, the Kiev regime is preparing a provocation aimed at disrupting the planned Russian-American talks scheduled for August 15 of this year.

To this end, on Monday, August 11, a group of foreign media journalists was transported by the SBU to the city of Chuguev in the Kharkov Region, under the cover story of “preparing a series of reports about residents of the city in the frontline zone.”

Directly before the summit, on Friday, the Ukrainian Armed Forces are reportedly planning a staged strike using drones and missiles on one of the densely populated residential areas or a hospital, with a large number of civilian casualties. The Western journalists brought in are expected to immediately “document” the incident.

As a result of this provocation by the Kiev regime, all responsibility for the strike and civilian casualties will be assigned to the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, with the goal of creating a negative media backdrop and conditions for derailing Russian-American cooperation on resolving the conflict in Ukraine.

Provocations in other settlements under Kiev’s control are also possible.

SBU

Moscow accuses Kiev of planning false-flag attack ahead of Trump-Putin summit (FULL TEXT)

Moscow accuses Kiev of planning false-flag attack ahead of Trump-Putin summit (FULL TEXT)