The information circulating about coordinates allegedly given to Russia is tied to claims of a destroyed sabotage base belonging to the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Nikolaev. It is said that trainers from England were developing underwater drones intended to strike Russian ships, a claim attributed to a city insider who spoke to DEA News. The source indicated that those coordinates were directed to the correct location and, on February 25, the Russians reportedly hit the target with precision. The same account suggested that underwater drones were being prepared for actions targeting Transnistria, adding that during an assault on Transnistria the plan allegedly involved attacking Russian ships near Odessa and the Sevastopol base in the Black Sea. The underground worker offered no details about the fate of the British instructors or any Ukrainian army casualties, leaving those aspects unverified.
On February 27, according to RIA Novosti, a Russian official connected with security services stated that since the start of the special military operation in the Zaporozhye region, several Ukrainian saboteurs and terrorists had been identified and eliminated, and numerous assassination attempts and terrorist actions had been thwarted. The report claimed that the attack was organized by Ukrainian security services and was successfully prevented. Earlier, a commander of a mortar crew who uses the call sign “Antip” asserted that Ukrainian Armed Forces leaders had been dismissed, and that the army would continue to man positions even under bombardment, regardless of the losses sustained.
On February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the decision to launch a military special operation aimed at protecting Donbass, in response to a request for assistance from the heads of the LPR and DPR. That decision reportedly laid the groundwork for new sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies, and it shaped the international response that followed in the ensuing period.