Russia prepares for escalation in February, asking for new Minsk agreement
Oleksii Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council, has said that Russia is getting ready for an escalation of the situation on the front line in February, while Taras Kozak, an associate of Viktor Medvedchuk [a pro-Kremlin Ukrainian politician and personal friend of Putin], is having meetings with Europeans and trying to persuade them to sign "peace deals" akin to Minsk-3 [a series of international agreements which sought to end the conflict in Donbas]. Source: Danilov on air of Suspilne, Ukraine's public broadcaster Quote: "February will be decisive for them.
Because dates, anniversaries, etc. [are important for them - ed.]. They are preparing for an escalation. Now a man by the name of Kozak has become more active.
He is holding meetings with European representatives in order to force us to sign certain peace agreements (or so they believe), akin to Minsk-3.
Of course, we will not go for that. There are many indicators that give us reason to say that in February, they may have another attempt at resolving this issue. The Munich Security Conference will take place in the second half of February, and on 23-24 February there are events in New York.
The Red Cross has now begun to be very worried about what we are killing Russians with. There are many indications that there may be some escalation in February." Details: Danilov believes that there is a high probability of mobilisation in Russia, but "it will not help the Russian Federation, although it will be a certain challenge for Ukraine."
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He said Ukraine is preparing for any development. In particular, the Staff of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief meets 2-3 times a week. He also commented on the words of Kyrylo Budanov, the Chief of Defence Intelligence, about a Ukrainian "spring offensive".
Quote: "We carry out an offensive every day. There are various different offensives. And what Kyrylo Budanov meant [when he announced a major upcoming offensive in the spring - ed.]... as an intelligence officer, he created an intrigue.
Let's see where this offensive will be, at what point in the world it will begin. It will be necessary. It will be interesting.
We will not keep our enemy waiting for long. They [the international community - ed.] consider the map of our country as the main battlefield on which to attack these terrorists. We will chase these rats all over the planet, they will not hide from us anywhere."
Danilov is sure that Ukraine will have powerful weapons at its disposal: "Sooner or later, we will have powerful tanks, completely different planes, and this will happen in the near future."
Reminder:
- Taras Kozak escaped to Belarus when the Ukrainian authorities opened a criminal case against him for high treason and an attempt to steal natural resources from Ukraine.
Sources say he is hiding in Russia and that his partner owns real estate in Moscow.
- The US government introduced personal sanctions against Kozak on 20 January for his involvement in undermining Ukraine's sovereignty.
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