Kremlin insiders suspected of plot to sow unrest in Ukraine with "Maidan-3" campaign, says intel

The subversive campaign "Maidan-3" to destabilize the situation in Ukraine in the Russian Federation is being carried out by the former assistant of the dictator Vladimir Putin, Vladislav Surkov, and the deputy head of the Kremlin administration, Sergey Kiriyenko, the representative of Ukraine's military intelligence Andriy Yusov announced on national telethon.

The first on the list are reportedly Kiriyenko and Surkov, as well as collaborators who fled to Russia.

He noted that people who are currently in Ukraine will also participate in the campaign.

"Unfortunately, there are names of people who are currently in Ukraine as objects of influence. This does not mean that they have already agreed. This information is being checked," Yusov said.

The representative of the DIU stressed that Ukrainian counterintelligence is constantly working.

At the end of November 2023, the representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate, Andriy Chernyak, reported that the Russians allocated $1.5 billion for the information operation "Maidan-3", of which $250 million was spent on Telegram.

On February 27, 2024, the Intelligence Committee under the President of Ukraine announced that the Russian special operation "Maidan-3" will reach its climax in March-May 2024. According to the plan of the Kremlin, they will be able to "shake up the situation" in Ukraine in the first half of June – and then it will be inflicted a military defeat in the east – such is the key idea of Moscow's operation.

In order to achieve the goals of promoting Russian narratives and destabilizing the situation in Ukraine, the mass purchase and creation of Telegram channels is conducted, as well as the creation of bot farms that amplify Russian rhetoric in social networks.