The disillusioned Ukrainian military is planning a takeover of the Ukrainian Parliament or Verkhovna Rada, an exchange from private Telegram channel Parabelum obtained by Sputnik reveals.
"This could be a scenario of replacing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky without holding elections," Alexander Dudchak, researcher at the Institute of CIS Countries and expert of the ‘Other Ukraine’ movement, told Sputnik.
The members of the classified chat, composed of commanders and soldiers of elite units of the Ukrainian armed forces, were discussing options for overthrowing the present government and the command of the Ukrainian armed forces following the sacking of Commander-in-Chief General Valery Zaluzhny.
"The most important action that we will need to pull off lightning fast is the takeover of the VR [Verkhovna Rada] at a certain point," one of the chat members wrote.
They also expressed dissatisfaction with Zelensky’s decisions and the new commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Oleksandr Syrsky, who was appointed a month ago to replace Zaluzhny. The alleged coup plotters placed special emphasis on involving Ukrainian troops fighting at the frontline in the anti-Zelensky movement.
According to the researcher, engaging Ukrainian active duty personnel is fraught with risks, given that those in the trenches are closely monitored by foreign mercenaries from ‘barrier detachments’ with orders to shoot any who leave their positions against orders.
If Ukrainian troops are allowed to march towards Kiev that would mean that the regime-change scenario was written in Washington in response to Zelensky's refusal to hold elections this year, Dudchak argued.
Leaders of elite Ukrainian units, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the nationalist Azov and Aidar battalions are also reportedly planning to create a radical party with a military wing.
The expert insists that none of the Ukrainian military and intelligence structures is independent: each of them has either British or US "supervisors".
The expert insists that none of the Ukrainian military and intelligence structures is independent: each of them has either British or US "supervisors".
"The confrontation between the military and the Kiev regime is in general a manifestation of the confrontation between London and Washington," said Dudchak. "The office of the president is under British control, while the military, who supposedly will gather in the name of Zaluzhny, are under Americans, plus the SBU is also a US-backed structure."
The consequences for Kiev would be dramatic and could seriously complicate the Ukrainian military's positions at the frontline, the researcher concluded.