Polish official claims Russia plans NATO false flag

Poland's deputy prime minister told CBS News he would not rule out the possibility of Russia staging a false flag operation in the next two years to justify an attack on a NATO member state. "I wouldn't exclude the Russians doing some kind of false flag operation against Russian territory in order to have a pretext for hitting one of the NATO countries," the deputy prime minister said.

The deputy prime minister said Ukraine's resistance has deprived Russia of resources needed for an effective invasion of NATO's eastern flank. He cited Ukrainian gains in the Black Sea and fire control over a strategic highway from Donbas to Crimea.

Ukraine's territorial gains Ukrainian forces have retaken more than 230 square miles of territory this year, according to Ukraine's top general. Attacks on energy infrastructure forced Russian authorities to cut off gas sales last week to civilians in Crimea.

Poland continues to serve as a transit route for an estimated 90 percent of foreign military supplies for Ukraine. Relations between Poland and Ukraine have recently been strained by a Ukrainian decision to rename a military unit after a World War II-era militia.

The deputy prime minister said the two countries must move past the dispute. "It's not about people falling into each other's arms. It's about deciding not to repeat the bad stuff and to find a better common future," he said. Russia's foreign minister told reporters this week that Moscow was ready to talk with Kyiv.

The deputy prime minister said any future discussions should be held directly between the two sides without third-party mediation. The last face-to-face meeting between Russian and Ukrainian representatives occurred in February in the United Arab Emirates.