Britain accuses Russia of plotting political overthrow

KYIV, Ukraine — The British government said Saturday that the Kremlin is developing plans to install a pro-Russian leader in Ukraine — and had already chosen a potential candidate — as Russian President Vladimir Putin weighs whether to order Russian forces massed on Ukraine’s border to attack.

The highly unusual public communique by the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office, issued late at night in London, comes at a moment of high-stakes diplomacy between the Kremlin and the West. Russia has deployed more than 100,000 Russian troops on Ukraine’s borders that could, according to American officials, attack at any moment.

“The information being released today shines a light on the extent of Russian activity designed to subvert Ukraine, and is an insight into Kremlin thinking,” Liz Truss, Britain’s foreign secretary, said in a statement. “Russia must deescalate, end its campaigns of aggression and disinformation, and pursue a path of diplomacy.”

The communique provided few details about how Russia might go about imposing a new government on Ukraine and did not say whether such plans were contingent on an invasion by Russian troops. British officials familiar with the situation, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the intent was to head off the activation of such plans as well as to put Putin on notice that this plot had been exposed.

In Washington, officials said they believe the British intelligence is correct. Two officials said it had been collected by British intelligence services. Within the informal intelligence alliance known as “Five Eyes,” Britain has primary responsibility for intercepting Russian communications, which is why it played a major role in exposing Russian interference in the 2016 elections.

In a statement, Emily Horne, spokesperson for the U.S. National Security Council, said, “This kind of plotting is deeply concerning. The Ukrainian people have the sovereign right to determine their own future, and we stand with our democratically elected partners in Ukraine.”

The Russian foreign ministry denied the British accusation.

“The spread of disinformation by the British foreign ministry is one more piece of evidence that NATO countries, led by the Anglo Saxons, are escalating tensions around Ukraine,” it said.