Russia has accused the UK of helping Ukraine to 'fake atrocities' that will be blamed on Putin's regime. However, Moscow has offered no evidence to support the claim - and Boris Johnson has previously slammed 'disinformation from the Kremlin'.
In a tweet and statement issued late on Saturday night, the Russian Ministry of Defence alleged that 'British intelligence services' were working with the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) in Lisichansk, a city in the Luhansk Oblast in Donbas. It said: "For this purpose, representatives of the Ukrainian and Western media, who had previously carried out staged photo and video filming in Bucha, arrived in the city in advance." Russia did not give any further details about this specific allegation, or provide any evidence.
The long statement made other unsubstantiated claims, including that "the special services of Ukraine are planning a provocation with the use of toxic chemicals to accuse Russian troops of allegedly striking civilian infrastructure facilities" in the Odesa area.
