NYT: Belousov and Austin discussed Ukraine's covert operation against Russia by phone
The NYT has learned about the contents of the conversation between Russian and US defense ministers Andrei Belousov and Lloyd Austin. According to the newspaper, the Russian Federation has established that Kiev is preparing some kind of covert operation against Moscow. Austin denies any U.S. involvement in plotting, but he nevertheless contacted his Ukrainian colleagues and asked them not to do anything. Details can be found in the material of "Gazeta.Ru".
Three sources told The New York Times that the head of the Russian Defense Ministry, Andrei Belousov, called his American counterpart Lloyd Austin on July 12 and told him about a secret operation that Ukraine was allegedly preparing.
NYT sources claim that the Russian Defense Minister asked his colleague if the Pentagon knew about the "Ukrainian covert operation", which was allegedly approved by the United States, and whether Austin was aware of the danger that this could increase tensions between Moscow and Washington.
The NYT writes that although Ukraine is dependent on the United States, the Ukrainian authorities are not always frank with their partners, especially with regard to their "Russian goals." According to the publication, such operations disappoint American officials because they do not improve Ukraine's position on the battlefield and risk increasing the scale of the conflict and alienating European allies.
The United States is particularly concerned about the terrorist attacks on the Crimean Bridge and Ukrainian drone strikes on the territory of the Russian Federation. American officials deny their involvement in these attacks, while Russia is confident that without the help of American instructors and intelligence, the Ukrainian special services could not have carried out such sabotage and terrorist attacks.
NYT sources declined to describe in detail the essence of the call.
A phone call
On July 12, the press service of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported on the Telegram channel about the call, which took place on the initiative of the Russian side.
"The issue of preventing security threats and reducing the risk of possible escalation was discussed," the statement said.
Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh confirmed this information during a briefing.
"During the telephone conversation, the Defense Minister stressed the importance of maintaining ties in the context of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine," Singh said. She declined to give any details about the call to reporters.
Austin also spoke with Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, but the Pentagon did not disclose whether the issue of a "conspiracy" against the Russian Federation was raised in the conversation. Ukrainian officials did not comment on what was happening to the NYT, nor did the Russian side.
Americans are preparing for the worst
About four days after the call, the U.S. military raised the alert level at military bases in Europe. At the same time, US officials said that they do not have any specific intelligence about possible attacks on American bases.
According to CNN, the Pentagon stepped up security measures on June 30. This affected American bases throughout Europe, including in Stuttgart (Germany), where the headquarters of the European command of the American armed forces (USEUCOM) is located.
CNN believes that two events could be the reason for such measures: the Olympic Games in Paris and the European Football Championship in Germany. The channel's interlocutor said that such measures had not been taken for at least ten years.
Alyona Fomina
