The President of Ukraine stated that the intelligence service had discovered a conspiracy involving Russia and Ukrainians to overthrow the government next week.
During the hours-long press conference, Volodmir Zelensky Said that Ukrainian intelligence agencies had obtained recordings of planners discussing their plans, which he said involved enlisting the support of Ukraine’s richest man Linat Akhmetov.
“We are not only facing challenges and possible escalations from the Russian Federation-we also have huge internal challenges. I have received news that our country will have a coup d’etat from December 1 to 2,” Zelensky said.
Zelensky said that Akhmetov was not involved in the conspiracy. He did not provide more details, nor did he accuse the Kremlin of playing a role. The Kremlin quickly denied any involvement. Akhmetov said in a statement that “Volodmir Zelensky’s public information about an attempt to involve me in a coup is absolutely a lie.”
He added: “Regardless of the president’s motives, I am angry at the spread of this lie. My position has been and will be clear and clear: an independent, democratic and unified Ukraine and Crimea and me. My hometown of Donbass. My behavior is in line with my words.”
Russia has been gathering troops near the border with Ukraine. Kiev, the United States and NATO have Express concern News in recent days about a possible Russian attack-the Kremlin considers this to be false and alarmist.
“We have complete control of our borders and are fully prepared for any upgrades,” Zelensky said. He did not provide all the details of the coup conspiracy. When asked if he thought the Kremlin was involved, he said: “I’m sorry, I can’t talk about it.”
But he also talked in detail about the threat of Russia’s military escalation at the press conference, and said that Ukraine will be prepared for this.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (Jens Stoltenberg) on Friday reiterated the West’s concerns about the buildup and warned that if Russia uses force against Ukraine, it “will pay a price and have consequences”.
Moscow rejected the allegations and accused Washington of increasing tensions in the region. The Kremlin also accused Kiev of “provoking” during years of conflict with pro-Russian separatists in two separate areas in the east.
In order to set some red lines for Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have spoken directly with him in the past two weeks. British Defense Minister Ben Wallace met with the Ukrainian Defense Minister in Kiev to provide further weapons commitments. The Swedish Defense Minister stated that he is ready to send the Swedish army to Ukraine to help train the country’s army.
US intelligence officials and senior Ukrainian military officials stated that as many as 92,000 Russian troops were assembled in northern and eastern Ukraine — many in the vicinity of Yelnya, close to the border between Russia and its ally Belarus — and Kerry in the south. The Mia Peninsula, the mainland of Ukraine.
By dragging the 56-year-old Akhmetov into the rumors of the conspiracy, Zelensky seems to be struggling to win popular support in the fight against his internal and external enemies. Ahkmetov’s business ranges from metals, mining and energy to banking, telecommunications, real estate and media.
According to estimates by Forbes magazine, Akhmetov’s net worth is more than 7 billion U.S. dollars (5.25 billion pounds), richer than the next three Ukrainian tycoons combined. He is also the country’s largest taxpayer and employer, with approximately 200,000 employees nationwide.
Reuters contributed to this report.
