Russia calls US assessment of possible Ukraine invasion ‘madness and scaremongering’

Russia has called a US intelligence assessment of a possible invasion of Ukraine “madness and scaremongering,” as the Biden administration sends troops to eastern Europe to increase NATO military buildup there.

The Washington Post, citing a US military and intelligence assessment, reported on Saturday that “Russia could seize Kyiv in days and cause 50,000 civilian deaths in Ukraine.”

Biden administration officials claimed Russia has assembled 110,000 troops along its border with Ukraine and is preparing for a "large-scale" invasion of the country.

Russia’s deputy ambassador to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyanskiy, called the US assessment “Madness and scaremongering.”

“Madness and scaremongering continues...what if we would say that US could seize London in a week and cause 300K civilian deaths? All this based on our intelligence sources that we won’t disclose. Would it feel right for Americans and Britts? It’s as wrong for Russians and Ukrainians,” Polyanskiy wrote on Twitter.

Madness and scaremongering continues..what if we would say that US could seize London in a week and cause 300K civilian deaths? All this based on our intelligence sources that we won’t disclose.Would it feel right for Americans and Britts?It’s as wrong for Russians and Ukrainians https://t.co/Zai1tpowO7

— Dmitry Polyanskiy (@Dpol_un) February 6, 2022

The Washington Post, which is considered close to sources at the CIA, reported on Thursday that, according to people "familiar with the matter," the Biden administration is set to reveal an alleged Russian plan whose details have been declassified by American intelligence.

Pentagon press secretary John Kirby confirmed the Post report and accused Russia of planning to create a pretext to invade Ukraine.

“We do have information that the Russians are likely to want to fabricate a pretext for an invasion,” Kirby told reporters.

“One option is the Russian government, we think, is planning to stage a fake attack by Ukrainian military or intelligence forces against Russian sovereign territory, or against Russian speaking people, to therefore justify their action,” he added.

This comes in an environment of massively heightened tensions, an intensive anti-Russian propaganda campaign by Washington, and deployment of forces and equipment throughout most of the former Warsaw Pact nations and three former Soviet republics that have joined NATO, with at least two others (Georgia and Ukraine) not yet admitted as formal members but who are involved in military cooperation, including hosting military assets, with the US and NATO.

Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the US and its allies of deliberately designing a scenario to lure Moscow into a war over Ukraine.

The Russian president said at a recent news conference in Moscow on Wednesday that the United States was trying to pull Russia into an armed conflict over the thorny issue of Ukraine.

Putin has said that, among other things, Washington is seeking a confrontation with Moscow as a pretext to impose more sanctions on Russia, a particular focus since the completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline in Europe.

“Ukraine is just an instrument of achieving this goal. It can be done in different ways, such as pulling us into some armed conflict and then forcing their allies in Europe to enact those harsh sanctions against us that are being discussed today in the United States,” he said.

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