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Boris Johnson says Ukraine kindergarten shelling is false-flag operation
The Guardian reported, Boris Johnson has claimed the shelling of a nursery school in the Donbas region of Ukraine by Russian-backed separatists was a “false-flag operation” aimed at discrediting the Ukrainian government.
According to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) there were “multiple shelling incidents” on Thursday morning across the frontline in eastern Ukraine.
Three people were injured in the attack in the city of Stanytsia Luhanska, which blew a hole through the wall of a nursery.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, accused the Russian side of “provocative shelling”.
Speaking on a visit to RAF Waddington, in Lincolnshire, the UK prime minister said: “Today, as I’m sure you’ve already picked up, a kindergarten was shelled in what we are taking to be – well, we know – was a false-flag operation designed to discredit the Ukrainians, designed to create a pretext, a spurious provocation for Russian action.
“We fear very much that that is the kind of thing we will see more of over the next few days.”
A “false-flag” incident is one in which its origin is disguised, usually in an attempt to provoke retaliation.
The Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, had said earlier that shelling across the border indicated Moscow was carrying out “false-flag operations”, though he did not point specifically to the nursery shelling.
Liz Truss: Vladimir Putin could drag out Ukraine crisis for months
Johnson said he would be travelling to Munich for the European security conference this weekend, “to talk about what we are going to do to unify the west”.
He said the UK was prepared to impose tough sanctions on Russia.
“There is still time for the Putin regime to step back. There is still time to avoid a catastrophe; a catastrophe for Russia, a catastrophe for Ukraine and for the world.
Russian-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine accuse government forces of mortar attacks
“If Russia were so mad as to invade, I don’t think people should imagine that this would be a brief business. This would be a bloody and protracted conflict in which, I’m afraid, there will be many casualties, and including many Russian casualties.”
Western security officials have been monitoring the shelling in Donbas closely, saying it was “the sort of provocation that has the potential to escalate”, while also stressing that exchanges of fire across the line of control in eastern Ukraine were not uncommon.
Boris Johnson sees diplomatic opening with Russia, but intelligence not encouraging
One official said similar hostilities had been seen previously and it was not uncommon for issues to “flash up and go away”. Another concluded: “I’m not saying this is a pretext, but I didn’t say it wasn’t a pretext.”
Source: theguardian
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Amid growing anxiety among several European countries participating in NATO over Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte stated he looks forward to sitting down with Trump.
Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.
Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.
On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.
It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.
Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.
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