Britain has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of plotting to install a pro-Russian politician at the head of the Ukrainian government, British media reported.

The British Foreign Office has made an unusual move, pointing to former Ukrainian MP Yevheniy Murayev as a potential Kremlin candidate.

Murayev, who owns a media, lost his seat in the Ukrainian parliament when his party failed to secure 5% of the vote in the 2019 elections. The Foreign Office points to four other Ukrainian politicians who are linked to Russian intelligence and are working on plans to invade Ukraine.

Most of them were ministers under former pro-Russian Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, who was ousted in 2014. Russia has amassed an army of 100,000 near the border with Ukraine, but has denied that it plans an invasion.

British ministers have warned that the Russian government will face serious consequences if troops enter Ukraine.

A statement from Foreign Minister Liz Truss said: “The information released today sheds light on the extent of Russia's efforts to subjugate Ukraine and the Kremlin's way of thinking. Russia must reduce tensions, end its campaigns of aggression and disinformation, and seek diplomatic channels.”

Russia's Foreign Ministry has called on its British counterparts to stop the provocations. According to Moscow, “London's disinformation is further evidence that NATO, led by the Anglo-Saxons, is working to increase tensions over Ukraine.”

Comment also came from the United States. U.S. National Security Council spokeswoman Emily Horne said Washington found allegations of a possible Russian conspiracy very worrying.

/BNR

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