Russia’s manhunt for Zelenskyi and other high-ranking officials is an element of the “Maidan-3” operation: Institute for the Study of War

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation has declared the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi, ex-President Petro Poroshenko, the head of the GUR of the Ministry of Defense Kyryll Budanov and the head of the SBU Vasyl Malyuk, the commander of the Ground Forces Oleksandr Pavlyuk and a number of high-ranking Ukrainian officials wanted. V Institute for the Study of War (ISW) called this step an informational preparation for the “Maidan-3” operation and an attempt by Moscow to establish the jurisdiction of Russian laws in post-Soviet countries.

It is worth noting that the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs does not specify which crimes became the basis for the wanted declaration of Zelenskyi, Budanov, or Malyuk. However, military personnel from the Russian Federation claim that the presence of such warrants will become an obstacle for Ukrainian officials to visit countries that have an extradition treaty with Russia.

“The Kremlin’s decision to declare Zelenskyi, Pavlyuk and Poroshenko wanted is probably part of the Russian information operation “Maidan 3″ and the Kremlin’s broader efforts to discredit the current and previous pro-Western Ukrainian governments that came to power after Euromaidan 2014, as well as diplomatic isolation of Ukraine,” the Institute for the Study of War notes.

In particular, it is about the spread of doubts about the legitimacy of the presidency of Volodymyr Zelenskyi. ISW believes that the “Maidan 3” information operation will reach its peak at the end of May.

The Office of the President of Ukraine has already responded to the announcement of the search for high-ranking officials. They noted that the Kremlin had better “seek common sense.”