Vice Chairman of the Russian Security Council Medvedev said that Russia will benefit if France decides to deploy soldiers to Ukraine to support Kiev.
“In fact, it would be great if France sent a few regiments to Ukraine. It is difficult to hide such a number of soldiers, so eliminating them is not the most difficult task, but certainly the most important. Think of the beneficial chain reaction that France's actions bring," Vice Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev posted on Telegram on March 20.
Mr. Medvedev did not specify what the benefits are for Russia. According to him, French soldiers in Ukraine will become intervention forces, so eliminating them is a "priority and a matter of honor" for the Russian armed forces.
Vice Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev (left) visits the military training center in Siberia in July 7. Image: AFP
Sergey Naryshkin, director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), said on March 19 that France was preparing to send troops to Ukraine, initially including about 3 soldiers. He also noted that French soldiers have been unofficially present in Ukraine for a long time. Some of them were killed or injured.
The French Ministry of Defense rejected this information, calling it "another example of systematic disinformation" by Russia.
Tensions between Russia and France recently escalated after President Emmanuel Macron late last month announced that the West "does not rule out the possibility" of sending troops to Ukraine, which is considered taboo and could cause NATO to be drawn into war. large scale with Russia, a country that possesses nuclear weapons.
The Kremlin criticized the French President's statement, warning that the West's deployment of troops to Ukraine would lead to the "inevitable" risk of direct confrontation between NATO and Russia.
On March 4, Mr. Macron explained that the statement does not mean that France will send troops to Ukraine in the near future. French officials affirmed that Mr. Macron wanted to stimulate debate on the issue among allies, but had no specific plan.
Huyen Le (Follow TASS, Kyiv Post, Reuters)
