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[Text/Observer Network Qi Qian] According to reports from RIA Novosti and TASS, on August 13 local time, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service announced that the United States is planning to launch a powerful propaganda offensive to force Ukrainian President Zelensky to step down; intelligence shows that former Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov is considered by the United States to be a suitable candidate to replace Zelensky.

In a statement on the same day, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service said that according to existing intelligence, there is growing dissatisfaction among the elites of both parties in the United States with Zelensky, and both have expressed doubts about the "targeted spending of billions of dollars in military aid" received by the Ukrainian government.

"They (the two parties in the United States) believe that Zelensky is taking crazy steps and threatening to escalate the war beyond Ukraine's borders," the statement said.

The statement said that the US government plans to launch a strong information offensive to discredit Zelensky and force him to step down, while looking for a replacement who is "easier to control, less corrupt, and can satisfy most Western allies." Intelligence shows that Arsen Avakov, the former Ukrainian Interior Minister, is considered a "suitable candidate."

"Avakov's strengths include his close ties to Ukrainian nationalist organizations and his ongoing contacts with European leaders," the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service said, adding that the White House believes this will enable the West to better prepare for launching negotiations with Russia to resolve the Ukrainian conflict.

Public information shows that Arsen Avakov is 60 years old and has served as a member of the Ukrainian Parliament and a member of the National Security and Defense Committee. He served as Ukraine's Minister of Internal Affairs during the Poroshenko and Zelensky governments from 2014 to 2021. In July 2021, Avakov took the initiative to submit a letter of resignation and resigned from the post of Minister of Internal Affairs. In May this year, Avakov was listed on the list of terrorists and extremists by the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs.

It is worth mentioning that Zelensky's five-year presidential term expired on May 20 local time. Due to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the Ukrainian government issued a martial law order and the new presidential election has been postponed indefinitely. Russian President Putin once questioned Zelensky's "legitimacy as head of state" and said that Zelensky's legal term has ended.

The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service released the above intelligence information as Ukrainian troops were crossing the border to attack Russian territory.

On the morning of August 6, local time, the Ukrainian army broke into the Russian Kursk Oblast, which was the largest attack launched by Ukraine on Russian territory since the outbreak of the conflict. Russian Chief of General Staff Gerasimov said that more than 1,000 Ukrainian armed forces personnel participated in the offensive.

On August 12, Zelensky admitted for the first time in a televised speech that evening that the Ukrainian army had crossed the border and attacked the Kursk region in western Russia, saying that Ukraine was pushing the war "towards Russian territory." Alexander Sersky, commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, claimed that the Ukrainian army had controlled about 1,000 square kilometers of Russian territory in the offensive launched in the Kursk direction.

On the same day, Alexei Smirnov, acting governor of Russia's Kursk Oblast, reported to President Putin that the current situation in the Kursk region is difficult and that the Ukrainian army has taken control of 28 local settlements and about 2,000 people.

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