US Says Russia Plans to Hit Ukraine’s Infrastructure

The US State Department has urged fellow citizens in Ukraine to leave the country due to the threat of attacks on its civilian infrastructure in the next few days. Information about the threat has been received by US intelligence agencies. The U.S. State Department urged fellow citizens in Ukraine to leave Ukraine because of the threat of Russian troops shelling its civilian infrastructure. “The State Department has information that Russia is stepping up efforts to strike civilian infrastructure and government facilities in Ukraine in the coming days. Russian strikes in Ukraine pose an ongoing threat to civilians and civilian infrastructure. The U.S. Embassy urges U.S. citizens to leave Ukraine now, using private ground vehicles if it is safe to do so,” according to a statement posted on the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine’s website on Tuesday, August 23. In addition, the U.S. Foreign Ministry published a series of recommendations in case of an attack. “If you hear a loud explosion or sirens, immediately seek shelter. If you are in a house or building, move to the lowest level with the fewest exterior walls, windows and openings; close all doors and sit near an interior wall, away from windows and openings,” the document said. The State Department also pointed to the “highly volatile security situation throughout Ukraine,” which “could deteriorate unannounced” urging U.S. citizens to “remain vigilant and take the necessary steps for their security awareness.” Washington has information about planned Russian attacks in Ukraine Reuters and The New York Times earlier reported that the U.S. has intelligence on Russia’s plans to launch new strikes against civilian infrastructure and government facilities in Ukraine in the near future. “We have information that Russia is stepping up efforts to strike Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and government facilities in the coming days. Given Russia’s track record in Ukraine, we are concerned about the continuing threat that Russian strikes pose to civilians and civilian infrastructure,” a U.S. government official said. The U.S. administration has indicated that it is declassifying the warning from U.S. intelligence agencies to convey this information to the widest possible audience. Ukraine celebrates National Flag Day on August 23 and Independence Day on August 24. On August 22, President Volodymyr Zelensky stated possible provocations by the Russian Federation on Ukraine’s Independence Day. He said that he had also warned several world leaders about it, in particular French President Emmanuel Macron and UN Secretary-General António Guterres. Zelensky noted that the leaders he had warned “understand what the occupiers are doing and what the consequences are, and they understand that Ukraine will not tolerate it.” DW