During an interview with Fox News this week, a former Navy captain and veteran intelligence analyst warned if Russia performs a false flag operation, the conflict in Europe may soon grow into a much broader war.
The interview was broadcast this week. “I believe the risk of further expansionism remains,” Steven Horrell told the network.
Escalate to De-Escalate Policy
The words come as the conflict enters its third week, following the invasion order issued by Russian President Vladimir Putin late last month.
“I believe Russia has always maintained the view that the West, namely the United States and NATO, has a very low threshold for cost and pain,” Horrell said.
“On the other hand, Russia has a considerably larger tolerance for an expense.”
As he stated, Russia is pursuing an “escalate to de-escalate” policy, which might indicate the war is likely to get substantially worse, as Russia attempts to acquire leverage to achieve a more favorable ending.
In a statement to Fox News, Horrell said, “A ship carrying a Kalibr ground attack missile system in the Black Sea might get to Berlin.”
He added, “If they perceived one of the European cities as a NATO vulnerability, they could initiate a non-nuclear escalation by striking targets beyond the current theater of action.”
He said Russia overestimated its capacity to take over Ukraine. This is because “the Kremlin’s decision-makers actually believed some of their own news reports and anticipated a swift and rapid triumph.”
“There are no indications that Russia will increase its force commitment to Ukraine. To be honest, I’m not sure how many more cards there are to play in that respect.”
Putin is likely to launch a wide-scale bio weapons attack on Kiev to finish the war quickly. His underlings like @glenngreenwald in "independent media" have done their part by flooding the zone with propaganda bullshit about biolabs. https://t.co/r4pdgDVeft
— Coy0te (@coy0tetr1ckst3r) March 12, 2022
Russian Propaganda
US authorities express concern that Russia may be ready to deploy chemical or biological weapons against Ukraine, following Russia’s accusation of Ukraine plotting a false flag assault with such weapons.
According to the New York Times, a report released by the European Expert Association found since October, fake news scientists have observed rumors going broadly online.
These rumors have likewise been present in Russian mainstream press that could serve as a prelude to such a procedure or to justify a military buildup.
Telegram has become a vitally important platform for sharing information about the invasion of Ukraine. Here's our guide to archiving Telegram posts, by @obtusatum https://t.co/EPBh8rNeT5
— Bellingcat (@bellingcat) March 8, 2022
Many of the reports originated in anonymous Telegram groups and were later confirmed by Russian authorities in televised comments, the paper stated.
The Russian government made some comments that were then repeated on Telegram channels until they stuck as regular and popular topics of conversation in the country for people to talk about.
According to NBC News, the US was concerned that Russia was making the allegation “to excuse a false flag operation or their own use of chemical/biological weaponry in Ukraine.”
The report also added, “We feel we should be on the watch for Russia to possibly employ chemical or biological weapons.”
