Russians supplied Hamas with infantry arms seized in Ukraine – Chief of Defence Intelligence of Ukraine

Kyrylo Budanov, Head of Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU), has revealed that the Russians supplied the Hamas group with infantry armaments that they managed to seize in Ukraine. He believes that the events in Israel will not affect the war in Ukraine if they end within a few weeks but at the moment there is a threat of a "global war".

Source: Budanov in an interview for Ukrainska Pravda

Quote: "We know for sure that weapons captured from Ukraine were supplied by the Russians to the Hamas group. These were mainly infantry armaments.

There is some information that something was sent to Hezbollah but at the moment, we don’t know for sure."

Details: Budanov also believes that the Russians taught the Hamas militants how to use FPV-drones against armoured equipment: "No one but the people who have had the experience of our theatre of war could have done this. Since we were not here, it must have been the Russians."

The DIU chief reported that a week before the start of combat action in Israel, a Russian radio station Sputnik (Satellite) was officially launched, broadcasting in Arabic in Lebanon: "This kind of broadcast has an absolutely propagandistic style with clear Russian narratives."

Moreover, on 24 September, a Russian spacecraft that is able to conduct electronic warfare and intercept satellite signals was transferred to Israel’s geostationary orbit.

From 22 to 24 September, a Russian military delegation was on a visit in Iran: "We know that the Iranian had a few, so to speak, requests. One of them concerned extending intelligence capacities. It is now clear what kind of intelligence information the Russians started providing for all interested parties. I stress that this is not only about Iran but about all interested parties."

Budanov also expressed his opinion on how the events in Israel may influence military aid for Ukraine. He believes that "if the conflict is limited in time up to a few weeks then there is nothing to worry about".

Quote: "But if the situation drags on, then there will definitely be some problems as Ukraine will not be the only state to need armament and ammunition supplies…

We see no problems with military aid until the middle of the next year. And then, everything will depend on us and whether we will be able to properly show and explain our needs to others and organise the expansion of domestic production."

He added that at the moment, "the world is getting close to a global war" because all these conflicts "are interconnected by the same countries involved in these processes".

Background:

• On 7 October, Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack on Israel, with fires breaking out in cities.
• ​​Russian occupiers provided Hamas militants with US- and EU-manufactured trophy weapons that they captured during the hostilities in Ukraine. Defence Intelligence of Ukraine says Russia is preparing to discredit Ukraine in order to affect the attitude of its allies and have an impact on the supply of Western weapons.

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