Russia May Plan Provocations Passing Off Its Tanks for Ukrainian. PHOTOS
Curious photos of Russian tanks with a painted white stripe used for "rapid identification" were posted on social networks. The stripe is the same as the one used for identification of the Ukrainian armored vehicles (the Ukrainian Armed Forces use either a single or a double stripe).
This is stated by investigative blogger Irakli Komakhidze in his post on Informnapalm, Censor.NET reports.
"These T-72 B3 tanks are in service with the 6th Tank Brigade, Western military district of the Russian Federation Armed Forces stationed in Mulino, Nizhny Novgorod region. White identification stripes were painted on the Russian tanks in August 2014. This "tuning" as the Russian tankers call it was made by at least one tank company (what we managed to count is up to 10 vehicles). Since August, the crews of tanks with such identification have been involved in extensive combat training at the Gorokhovetsky range," the blogger writes.
Read also: Terrorists Plan Provocations To Discredit Ukrainian Soldiers - NSDC
"The point of this "tuning" is not clear, but I have some assumptions - Russian tanks with white stripes are used in the bilateral exercise, with the purpose of identifying the enemy equipment, as well as there is a psychological component. There is also a second option - tanks and crews with white stripes are preparing for another provocation in Ukraine, with the ability to pass them off as Ukrainian ones and mislead the other side (which is unlikely, because the Ukrainian Armed Forces do not have such modification of tanks)," Komakhidze writes.
Read also: Terrorists Spread Rumors About Ukrainian Artillery Attacks on Churches on Holy Protection Holiday
Another blogger, Roman Burko, notes that there will be possible provocation on the part of the Russian Federation including a "changeover" on Oct. 23-24.
"The stripes on the equipment are ready. They are waiting for the order. Along with this, the separatists are urgently taking heir families away from Donetsk. And Girkin, as a "court speaker", probes the information field "frightening" Putin with Hague if he does not invade Ukraine.
"There is another interesting thing - there is an obsessive rumor among the separatists that "on Friday Ukraine will attack and break the truce." Again, remember the "white stripes on the equipment", which makes together an indirect evidence. Conclusion: there is urgent need to change the style of identification, replace the white stripes with something else, attract the attention of international observers and closely observe "from where the wind blows." It is Russia's idee fixe to disrupt the elections and they will implement it "beautifully" in theory, but clumsy in practice. And catching them at it red-handed is very important," Burko concludes.
The presence and losses of the 6th Armored Brigade in Ukraine were repeatedly reported by the media.
Tanks of the Mulino Tank Brigade with scraped off license plates and white identification circles were spotted near the Ukrainian border in Matveyev Kurgan district of the Rostov region. Presumably, the tanks of the same brigade were burned by the Ukrainian artillery near Starobashevo and later presented as destroyed Ukrainian tanks by the Russian propaganda.
