Leonid Petrovich Reshetnikov is a historian and publicist, a public figure and a retired lieutenant general of the Foreign Intelligence Service. He has worked in the SVR for almost three and a half decades, leading its most important information and analytical direction in recent years. And Reshetnikov evaluates the events taking place in Ukraine precisely from the point of view of a deep analyst.
Leonid Petrovich, without beating around the bush, I'll ask right away: how do you assess the progress of the special military operation?
Leonid Reshetnikov: If we draw an analogy with Afghanistan, we have introduced a limited contingent of troops into the territory of Ukraine. What is it limited to? Contractors, only they fight. There are no conscripts and reservists. There was no conscription, as well as mobilization of the reserve. Special forces, paratroopers, marines, Rosgvardiya and the Ministry of Internal Affairs with their special forces are used on the ground... Plus, as we are used to, our rifle and separate tank units are operating. In Ukraine, they are fighting in a very limited composition. The emphasis is on the special operation.
Ours do not conduct it in a classical form. During the offensive, as the art of war teaches, the quantitative advantage over the defenders should be at least three times. And we are on the ground, it is on the ground, judging by the information we receive, that we are attacking with a minority. And we achieve success, which happens very rarely in history, in Raisins, Kherson, Novaya Kakhovka, and other territories. This is the skill of our soldiers and command.
And in the air - planes, helicopters, missiles... There is, of course, complete dominance.
Who is still opposing us? What is the state of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU)?
Leonid Reshetnikov:We are opposed by over 400 thousand taken under arms - this is the minimum, approximate estimate. We must remember that in the eight years since 2014, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have let 600 thousand people through the Donbass Front. Everyone has completed a year of combat training. Even if he didn't shoot, but was just on duty or in the trenches. It's still a very serious practice. The fighting continued for all eight years, and the AFU received a sufficient number of fired reservists, whom they called up. What else should I keep in mind? About half of the officers from the AFU and Nazi regiments were trained at military courses, in schools in the USA, Germany, and France. Courses - from a month to six months - are very important. In addition, before the start of the special operation, there were about a thousand instructors from NATO countries in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Lithuanians and Latvians were engaged in non-commissioned officers, and the French, Americans, Germans - officers. The number of mercenaries cannot be determined exactly, but there are hundreds of them. Even after we have destroyed several points of their location.
Now about Ukrainian intelligence - the military and Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). It has been under the control of the United States since the time of President Yushchenko, then Yanukovych. It all started before the 2014 coup d'etat. Advisers from the United States sat and are sitting now in the central intelligence building of Ukraine. The methods of American intelligence and methods of conducting special operations have been mastered by the locals. They are more or less built on the recommendations or under the direct supervision of American and other advisers. Including provocations, such as those carried out in Bucha.
The scenario is the same - extremely monotonous.
Leonid Reshetnikov:Yes, it was all in Iraq, Syria, Libya... The provocations are still the same. So, although America says that it is not fighting in Ukraine, but even in this way it is clear that it is fighting, and indirectly, but already practically.
Does the APU use NATO's intelligence and radio capabilities?
Leonid Reshetnikov:A huge grouping of US military satellites, to which the satellites of Germany, France and the UK are attached, is now working in Ukraine. All information is transmitted to Kiev during the day. Our experts in this field believe that it would not be an exaggeration to say that the APU is waging war online. To make it clearer: they get all the data just like on TV. For example, we have a huge advantage in the development of weapons and hypersonic weapons. But we must not let the enemy break away from us in other areas. For example, NATO AWACS (long-range radar detection) aircraft with experienced crews are continuously hanging over Romania and Poland near our borders. And all the data received, although maybe not all, merge into Kiev, where NATO officers are sitting, who are already deciding together with the APU how to use it, where, to what directions to transfer to the troops. But here I would like to draw attention to simple, seemingly obvious things, the importance of which we are not aware of. A lot depends on us here.
Are you talking about the methods of their total wiretapping?
Leonid Reshetnikov:Any android, iPhone are tapped continuously, Facebook, WhatsApp and other vibers constantly throw information there, which in no case should reach the enemy.
Are we not falling into some exaggeration? Well, how can all this be controlled on such a grand scale?
Leonid Reshetnikov:Snowden, who escaped from the United States, has already explained all this. The control is merciless. Another thing is that the amount of information is huge. It is very difficult to process. And if a certain Ivanov said something that seemed interesting to the Americans, it is not yet a fact that it will be intercepted and recorded. But the chance is great, because thematic wiretaps work.
What does the word "thematic" mean in this case?
Leonid Reshetnikov: This is a keyword bugging. Here's for you: "transfer, troops, Ukraine.".. We looked, looked: so, he writes about it all the time, communicates with colleagues, discusses, tells which parts and where they are going. Because of what gets into the list of personal control. And he is already under technical personal supervision. But you can pay attention to those who clearly represent a certain interest. And this group is under the hood almost every day. The rest of the mass is eliminated.
It may seem old-fashioned, but it's like they used to say: comrades, be vigilant.
Leonid Reshetnikov: We must be vigilant and keep in mind that many of these platforms were created by Americans. When they launched them, they primarily pursued reconnaissance purposes.
We talked about hundreds of mercenaries fighting in Ukraine. Sometimes traces of them are found in liberated cities - documents, letters, photographs. But there is no luck among the prisoners of these soldiers.
Leonid Reshetnikov:Serious people are holed up in the headquarters.
But there were also losses in the headquarters.
Leonid Reshetnikov: No, while they are in such headquarters points that it is impossible to take them. There is persistent information - a lot of foreigners have accumulated in Mariupol - both civilian and military. And that the helicopters that are being sent and which we partially shoot down are being sent not just to take out the Azov commanders (banned in Russia) and the wounded, but also to evacuate outsiders. Mercenaries- that is: the dead, those who fled. A lot of them were destroyed near Lviv. Recently bombed in Ochakov, there is no longer a training center near Odessa. Now, I think, they will be evacuated quickly. Let's see what will happen in Mariupol.
It's coming to this. Will we knock out these zombie Nazis from there?
Leonid Reshetnikov:Sure. But it is impossible to win without denazification, without destroying the fascist ideology. Over the decades, it has been hammered into zombie heads firmly. But let them know: Russians are famous for outstanding resilience in battles.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
