Poroshenko's Claims On 'Russian Aggression' Preparation For Provocation - Russian Lawmaker

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko's claims about Russian forces allegedly being concentrated along the Ukrainian border may be part of a campaign aimed at creating a background for frame-ups or provocations ahead of the Ukrainian presidential election, Russian lawmaker Frants Klintsevich said

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 21st February, 2019) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko's claims about Russian forces allegedly being concentrated along the Ukrainian border may be part of a campaign aimed at creating a background for frame-ups or provocations ahead of the Ukrainian presidential election, Russian lawmaker Frants Klintsevich said.

On Wednesday, Poroshenko gave a speech at the UN General Assembly, during which he spoke about Russia's alleged aggression in the conflict-torn Donbas region, the "annexation" of Crimea and thousands of Russian troops allegedly being deployed near the Ukrainian border.

"I believe that the claims of Petro Poroshenko about the mass concentration of Russian forces along the Russian-Ukrainian border are not just lies ... I do not rule out that by these claims, the informational preparation of some frame-up, similar to the Gleiwitz provocation, at the border is being prepared. And it can be implemented in the nearest future and prior to the Ukrainian presidential election," Klintsevich, who is a member of the Russian upper house's defense and security committee, wrote on Facebook late on Wednesday.

The lawmaker added that the Ukrainian authorities would stop at nothing in order to ensure the needed result at the election.

The Gleiwitz incident as a false flag attack on a German radio broadcaster Sender Gleiwitz by alleged Polish forces which became one of the motives for the German invasion of Poland in the run-up to World War II in 1939.

Ukraine's presidential election is scheduled for March 31. According to fresh polls, cited by Ukrainian media outlets, Poroshenko is expected to come in the second in the first round with 13.1 percent lagging behind entertainer Volodymyr Zelensky, who is forecast to garner 17.5 percent of the ballots.

The armed conflict in the east of Ukraine was triggered in 2014, after the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics announced their independence from Ukraine, refusing to recognize the new government, which seized power after what many believed was an overthrow of then-President Viktor Yanukovych.

The same year, Crimea rejoined Russia as a result of a referendum, which provoked criticism not only on the part of Kiev but western countries, too.

Russia has repeatedly said it was not a part of the Donbas conflict and insisted that the Crimean referendum was carried out in line with international norms.