Moscow has considered staging a graphic propaganda video that would purport to show an attack by Ukraine on Russia or Russian-speaking people as a pretense for an invasion, according to a U.S. intelligence assessment.
The plot is one of multiple options Russia has developed to justify sending troops across its border into Ukraine, according to a senior U.S. official who requested anonymity to discuss intelligence assessments. The U.S. is publicizing the possibility to undermine the effort, the official said.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby later confirmed Russia’s plans for the propaganda video, saying it would feature corpses and actors pretending to be mourners.
