When Russian forces entered the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone on the primary day of the struggle in Ukraine, it took them simply hours to seize the 300 employees, firefighters and guards, and declare victory.
Getting into Ukrainian territory from neighbouring Belarus, this was a strategic transfer by Vladimir Putin’s troops – and one the Western world thought would draw up the remainder of the invasion.
However now, a Reuters investigation has revealed the notorious website in Pripyat was captured so simply due to a long-standing Kremlin operation to infiltrate it with secret brokers.
‘Aside from the exterior enemy, we sadly have an inner enemy, and this enemy is not any much less harmful,’ stated Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s Nationwide Safety and Defence Council.
By the point Russia’s first tanks rolled into the nation, Moscow already had brokers within the Ukrainian defence, safety and regulation enforcement sectors.
Mr Danilov declined to share the names of the traitors however stated they wanted to be ‘neutralised’ in any respect prices.
Courtroom paperwork and testimony additional present Valentin Viter, Chernobyl’s head of safety, is presently in detention.
He’s being investigated for withdrawing from his submit after he allegedly ordered the plant’s 169 guards to give up.
Brokers have additionally begun a second probe into him for suspected treason however his lawyer rejects the allegations.
In an announcement to investigators, Viter stated that on the day of the invasion he spoke by telephone with the Nationwide Guard unit commander.
He suggested the commander to not endanger his unit, telling him: ‘Spare your folks.’
Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation has additionally stated it’s investigating former prime intelligence official, Andriy Naumov, on suspicion of treason for passing safety secrets and techniques about Chernobyl to a overseas state however it’s unclear if that is Russia.
A supply revealed to the information company that Russian brokers have been deployed to the location final yr to bribe officers and put together for the assault.
At a nationwide stage, one other supply warned that Putin’s authorities was relying on activating sleeper brokers contained in the Ukrainian safety.
It’s believed they have been additionally lining up hotelier Oleg Tsaryov to guide a puppet authorities in Kyiv after president Volodymyr Zelensky was ousted.
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