Russia's plans for war in the Middle East - Zelenskyy heard the report of the head of the DIU

Kyiv • UNN

March 10 2026, 02:23 PM • 3268 views

The head of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine, Oleh Ivashchenko, reported to the head of state on the Kremlin's intentions to use the conflict around Iran to lift sanctions.

Russia's plans for war in the Middle East - Zelenskyy heard the report of the head of the DIU

Photo: t.me/V_Zelenskiy_official

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy heard a report from the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, Oleh Ivashchenko, regarding the intentions of the Russian leadership to take advantage of the situation around Iran and the possible protraction of the American military operation. The head of state announced this on Telegram, as reported by UNN.

Details

According to Zelenskyy, this is currently Russia's main calculation: to increase the risks of a long war in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf region, in order to maximally weaken global pressure on Russia for its war against Ukraine. The Kremlin then hopes to escape partner sanctions and gain additional resources through fluctuations in oil and gas prices, the head of state noted.

There is data regarding Russian intentions to discuss the complete lifting of energy sanctions. We are determining our countermeasures and will inform our partners.
- Zelenskyy's statement reads.

The President also instructed intelligence to work more actively on Russian military production. He noted: Ukraine must limit the potential of Russian aggression, despite geopolitical challenges in the world.

Important documents were obtained by our intelligence regarding the Russian assessment of their losses on the battlefield. In particular, a change in the ratio of killed and wounded Russians was recorded, namely, out of 100% of losses, 62% were killed and 38% were wounded. The Russians themselves, in closed official reports, state their irreversible losses at 1 million 315 thousand killed and seriously wounded. We have reason to believe that the data on this level of losses is underestimated.
- Zelenskyy stated.

The President of Ukraine added that the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense obtained updated data on cooperation between Russia and North Korea. He thanked Ukrainian military intelligence for its work.