Earlier this month, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov called Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin. The Russian minister wanted to inform Austin about Ukraine's “covert operation” against Russia. The New York Times writes about it, citing its sources, UNN reports .
Details
As the publication notes, since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Austin has spoken on the phone with the Russian Defense Minister only five times, and almost always at the Pentagon's initiative.
In fact, Austin had contacted Russia's new defense minister, Andrei Belousov, just weeks earlier, on June 25, in an attempt to keep “lines of communication open,” the Pentagon said.
It was the first phone conversation between the two men after Belousov replaced Sergei Shoigu, who had long served as Russia's defense minister.
According to two U.S. officials and another official with knowledge of the call, Belousov called on July 12 to deliver a warning: the Russians had discovered a Ukrainian “covert operation” being prepared against Russia, which they believed was being conducted with American approval.
According to two U.S. officials, Pentagon officials were surprised by the allegation and were unaware of any such “conspiracy.”
“But whatever Belousov said, according to all three officials, it was taken so seriously that the Americans contacted the Ukrainians and basically said: if you're thinking about doing something like this, don't do it,” the newspaper writes.
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“During the conversation, the secretary emphasized the importance of maintaining lines of communication amid Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine,” said Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh a few hours after the July 12 conversation.
Pentagon officials declined to say whether Austin raised the issue in a phone call on Tuesday with his Ukrainian counterpart, Rustem Umerov.
A statement from the Russian Defense Ministry after the July 12 conversation confirmed that it was initiated by Belousov and added that “the issues of preventing security threats and reducing the risk of possible escalation were discussed.” But the statement did not mention Ukraine's “secret mission.
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