Russia wants to declare "victory" in its war against Ukraine - and even against NATO - on the third anniversary of the start of Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion, Ukrainian intelligence claims, quoted by "Politico".
Russian propagandists have been instructed to promote "victory" narratives on the symbolic date of February 24 to incite distrust in Ukrainian society, destabilize the country, and discredit partners in Kiev as "enemies of peace", according to the Ukrainian military intelligence service, known as the GUR.
The campaign would fit in with a notable shift in US foreign policy, with Washington appearing to find consensus with President Putin, who invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
In its Telegram post, the GUR claimed that key narratives of the information campaign included slogans such as "The West has betrayed Ukraine", "Neither Moscow nor Washington care about the opinion of Europeans and Ukrainians", or that "the Ukrainian government is illegitimate" - a narrative that has been pushed in recent days not only by the Kremlin but also by the White House.
Trump has repeatedly attacked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over the past week, calling him incompetent and an "dictator without elections" who has tricked the United States into spending billions of dollars on military aid. According to Kiev's military intelligence, American aid to Ukraine will also be a major target of Kremlin propaganda.
"In addition, Russia is preparing to declare an alleged "victory" in the war against Ukraine by "round date" February 24, 2025, the third anniversary of the start of the full-scale war," GUR claims.
"These plans may also include "Russia's victory over NATO", as Moscow propaganda has long presented the war against Ukraine as a war with the alliance."
According to military intelligence, the Kremlin's further goal is to discredit Ukraine's European partners, who are seeking to strengthen Kiev's position amid ongoing Russian-American negotiations with a 6 billion euro military aid package. "The Kremlin labels such European governments "enemies of peace," GUR warned.