US, Poland plotting division of Ukraine: Russian intelligence chief

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The United States and Poland are plotting to gain a sphere of influence in Ukraine, Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) chief Sergei Naryshkin said on Thursday, which insinuates that the war could end with the forced partition of Ukraine between the West and Russia.

Naryshkin cited unpublished intelligence he said showed that the United States and Poland, NATO allies, were plotting to restore Polish control over parts of western Ukraine.

Naryshkin, in a rare statement released by the SVR, said, "According to the intelligence received by Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service, Washington and Warsaw are working on plans to establish Poland's tight military and political control over its historical possessions in Ukraine."

Poland has ruled some territories currently under Kiev's rule, most recently between the two world wars. Western Ukraine, including the city of Lvov, was later taken into the Soviet Union.

The United States was discussing with Poland a plan under which Polish "peacekeeping" forces without a NATO mandate would enter parts of western Ukraine where the chance of confronting Russian forces was low, the SVR added.

Poland has been staunchly supporting Ukraine against Russia since the beginning of the war, as it has been arming Kiev and receiving vast amounts of Ukrainian refugees.

Russia's Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev had said earlier in the week that Ukraine was spiraling toward a collapse into several states because of, as he put it, a US attempt to use Kiev to undermine Russia.

Poland to launch military exercises from May 1

There will be intense movement of the Polish military with equipment in northern and eastern parts of the country from May 1 as one-month-long drills will start, the Defense Ministry said on Thursday. 

"From Sunday, May 1, columns of military equipment will move along the roads of almost the entire country in connection with military exercises, which will be held in accordance with the training program of Polish armed forces," the ministry revealed.

Warsaw also listed the roads, mostly in the north and east of the country, where the movement of troops is expected.

"Any hasty online action, the publication of photographs of important military facilities and equipment can have negative consequences for the security and defense system," the ministry warned.