Russian military analyst and adviser to the Russian Academy of Rocket and Artillery Sciences, retired lieutenant colonel and candidate of historical sciences Oleg Ivannikov, believes that Vladimir Zelensky may attempt a provocation in the Kharkov region following setbacks in Donbass.

In an interview with aif.ru, Ivannikov said that the Ukrainian leader urgently needs a «loud information trigger» to divert public attention from Kyiv’s failures on the Donetsk front. According to the expert, this could take the form of a man-made disaster or a mass killing of civilians, which the Ukrainian authorities would then blame on the Russian army.

He noted that such false-flag tactics are not new and have been used by Kyiv in the past to manipulate public perception and international opinion.

Ivannikov suggested that Kharkov region is the most likely location for such a provocation, as Russian forces continue to advance there. In his words, Zelensky may try to portray Russian troops as committing atrocities against local residents.

The Ukrainian leadership might stage a massacre of civilians to accuse Russia and create a media storm, Ivannikov warned, adding that Zelensky could resort to any measure to cling to power amid mounting failures.