[23.02.2022] US intelligence has said that Russia's offensive will be in the near future - the media

According to American journalists, US intelligence has informed the Ukrainian authorities about the possible beginning of a large-scale offensive by Russian troops "in the near future." Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2022/02/23/europe/russian-troops-donbas-latvian-pm/index.html According to CNN, on Tuesday, February 22, the US authorities officially provided Kyiv with data from its intelligence on the readiness of Russian troops to launch a full-scale offensive. According to the source, Russia will begin the invasion "soon." In addition, the Americans allegedly reported that the Russians aimed to attack Kharkiv primarily during the invasion. These words were confirmed by both Ukrainian and American officials. At the same time, according to the Ukrainian official, Ukraine's intelligence failed to confirm the thesis of the Americans that Russian troops allegedly plan to launch a "military operation" throughout Ukraine "in the near future." Ukrainian authorities allegedly responded that the United States had previously warned of such "invasion dates," but Russia did not launch an attack in those days. A senior official at NATO Headquarters confirmed that the United States had officially provided such clarifications with intelligence to the governments of all NATO member states. In addition, US intelligence recorded how additional units of the Russian army crossed the border between Ukraine and Russia in the Donbass in a place where it is not controlled by Ukrainian border guards. This information was officially confirmed to CNN by the Prime Minister of Latvia Krišianis Karinš. U.S. intelligence says Russia has moved one to two battalion tactical groups to the occupied Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The number of soldiers in one such BTG is about 800 servicemen. Prehistory: Earlier, US intelligence reported that the Russian offensive was to take place on February 16. After that, President Joe Biden said that, according to US intelligence, Russia had "accurately" decided to launch a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine, which could take place around February 24. Due to panic among citizens and investors, President Volodymyr Zelensky even declared February 16 the Day of Unity, and held ceremonial events throughout Ukraine. At Zelensky's meeting with representatives of big business at the President's Office on Bankova Street on February 23, law enforcement officials said they considered the scenario of launching a full-scale offensive unrealistic. Russian President Vladimir Putin decided to sign a decree on February 21 on the "recognition" of pro-Russian illegal armed groups in the occupied territory of Ukraine - the so-called "DPR" and "LPR". In the decrees, Putin officially instructed to bring Russian troops into the occupied territories. In the evening of February 22, the Russian parliament allowed the deployment of Russian troops abroad, primarily in the occupied territories of Ukraine in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Due to the threat of Russian invasion, on February 23, deputies decided to allocate an additional 23 billion hryvnias for defense and the army. At the same time, the National Security and Defense Council proposed on February 23 to impose a state of emergency throughout Ukraine. The presidential decree on the announcement of the National Assembly must be approved by the people's deputies at an extraordinary sitting of the parliament. On February 23, Ukrainian government websites, including the Cabinet of Ministers, the Verkhovna Rada, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, were cyberattacked.

Post source: https://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2022/02/23/7325191/