“It’s an open secret”said the Washington Post about Ukraine's aid program for the Syrian rebels who took power in Damascus on the night of December 7 to 8. kyiv's objective being to inflict a hard blow on its Russian opponent, the Ukrainian intelligence services delivered some of the drones which were used to overthrow Bashar al-Assad, the former Syrian president and one of the main Moscow's ally in the Middle East.
Around 20 experienced drone operators and some 150 Ukrainian FPV (first-person view) drones were made available to the main rebel group Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) four to five weeks ago.
Destabilize Russia
According to Washington Post informants, however, “the role played by kyiv in the overthrow of Syrian power remains modest”. On the other hand, it participates in a broader effort to destabilize Russian operations in the Middle East.
Syria: at the gates of revolution
According to a Kyiv Post article, published June 3: “since the start of the year, [rebelles] Syrians, supported by Ukrainian operators, have inflicted numerous strikes against Russian military installations in the region.. The newspaper then claimed that these operations had been carried out by a special unit of the GUR (the Ukrainian intelligence service) called “Khimik”in collaboration with the Syrian opposition.
According to the Syrian daily Al-Watan, Russia for its part has repeatedly denounced Ukraine's involvement in Syria. In a September statement, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed that the GUR was carrying out “dirty operations” and that his Major General Kyrylo Budanov was personally in contact with the HTS rebel group.
Ukraine on all fronts
Apart from fighting on its territory, Ukraine embraces any opportunity to destabilize its adversary. “We carry out such operations aimed at reducing Russian military potential, wherever possible” Kyrylo Budanov told the BBC last April.
The British media reported in particular in August that Ukraine had helped rebels from northern Mali to ambush Russian mercenaries from the Wagner group. The July 27 attack killed 84 Wagner group mercenaries as well as 47 Malians, according to the BBC. However, these allegations were later denied by kyiv, denying any involvement in this operation. We also remember the offensive carried out by the Ukrainian army in Kursk last August, temporarily imposing itself as occupiers of Russian territory.
Ukraine's operations in Africa or the Middle East represent so many attempts “to expand the battlefield and hurt Russia in areas where it is not prepared”explains the Washington Post.
