Ukraine is fighting to liberate all territory captured by Russia in the last decade, and any claim that the country is shifting its focus in the war to prioritise security over land is false, Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov said on Friday.
“Territorial integrity is part of our values,” the Ukrainian minister told a joint press conference with his Norwegian counterpart in Oslo.
When asked about reports that Ukraine is shifting its focus in the war, Umerov said this was false and part of Russian propaganda efforts.
“Our priority is still to protect people, protect the nation, to liberate people from almost 10 years of temporary occupation, so Crimea and Donbas are part of Ukraine,” he said.
People living in territories held by Russia are all waiting to be liberated, he added.
Meanwhile Ukraine’s security service SBU said on Friday it had detained a special operations forces unit commander accused of disclosing plans of operations behind enemy lines to Russia’s GRU military intelligence.
“The aggressor was most interested in intelligence on sabotage and reconnaissance raids by Ukrainian special forces behind the front line in the Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Crimean directions,” SBU stated.
The “mole”, whose rank corresponded to lieutenant colonel, had access to information on planned routes, weapons and targets, according to the statement.
Russian forces planned to use the intelligence to eliminate special forces soldiers on the front line and in the Russian-occupied parts of southern Ukraine.
SBU said Russia’s military intelligence “activated” the unit commander in the spring of this year but that he was recruited before Moscow’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 through his acquaintances in Russia.
The security service said that Ukraine’s top military leadership aided with the case and the suspect could face life in prison on charges of treason.
Team Bharatshakti
(With inputs from Reuters)
