Kyiv: Russia completes formation of strike forces near Ukrainian borders
The Chief of the General Staff and the commanding officer of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Viktor Muzhenko, has announced that Russia is completing the formation of its strike forces on the border with Ukraine, which together with special-operations military units will form the basis of the invasion forces, Interfax reports.
"In the current geopolitical realities, we predict military threats from three out of four directions: north, east and south. Russia is completing the formation of the strike force on the border with Ukraine, which, together with special forces units, will form the basis of the invasion force," said Muzhenko in Kyiv on Wednesday at a meeting with representatives of the military-diplomatic corps accredited in Ukraine.
He noted that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have both means and personnel to stop Russian tanks and airplanes.
"Subject to the fulfillment of the state defense order in 2019, we will double new equipment in comparison with previous years. This is primarily about updating and adopting anti-missile defense complexes and modernized missiles, and providing the ground forces, assault troops and marines, with domestic anti-tank complexes ", said Muzhenko.
At the same time, the Chief of the General Staff added that he did not exclude the possibility of some sabotage acts in the Donbas before the presidential elections in Ukraine.
“The period of the so-called pre-election turbulence, which our country has entered, is used by the Russian Federation to conduct a number of special operations to undermine Ukraine’s defense potential. We are monitoring a significant increase of the enemy’s activity in the information space. Russia is trying to influence personnel through a series of information and psychological operations. At the same time, we do not exclude the possibility that the enemy will carry out a number of direct acts in the form of sabotage near the front line as well as deep in the rear," said Muzhenko.
On February 26, President Petro Poroshenko, from the United Nations podium announced the threat of full-scale Russian aggression against Ukraine.