Ukraine war: Russia 'plans to seize southern Ukraine'

Russia aims to seize southern Ukraine and to open a route to the separatist region of Transnistria in Moldova, a senior Russian general says.

Maj Gen Rustam Minnekayev specified that Moscow would seek to take "full control" over the south in addition to the eastern Donbas region - the stated objective of the Russian authorities.

Transnistria is a small Russian-backed region that borders Ukraine.

It is unclear if Gen Minnekayev's comments were officially sanctioned.

Russian defence officials told the BBC's Steve Rosenberg that they were "looking into" the general's comments, which - if confirmed - offer the first insight into Russia's potential plans in the coming weeks.

A small Russian-speaking breakaway region, Transnistria borders western Ukraine. It claimed independence after the fall of the Soviet Union in a bloody conflict, but is not recognised internationally and officially remains part of Moldova.

A small detachment of around 1,500 Russian troops has been stationed in the region since 1995 as part of a truce agreement.

Gen Minnekayev, who is deputy commander of Russia's central military district, was speaking at a military event in the Sverdlovsk region.

"Control over the south of Ukraine is another way out to Transnistria, where there are also facts of oppression of the Russian-speaking population," Gen Minnekayev said.

President Vladimir Putin made identical claims about the alleged discrimination of Russian speakers in Ukraine before launching the invasion on 24 February. His predecessor in 2008, Dmitry Medvedev sparked an invasion of South Ossetia in Georgia on similar grounds.

Ukraine's defence ministry denounced Gen Minnekayev's comments as Russian "imperialism".

In a statement posted to Twitter, Ukrainian officials said Russia had "acknowledged that the goal of the 'second phase' of the war is not victory over the mythical Nazis, but simply the occupation of eastern and southern Ukraine".

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia is planning on holding a series of sham independence referendums in occupied regions to create a series of pro-Russian breakaway states.

"If they ask you to fill out some questionnaires, leave your passport data somewhere, you should know this is not to help you," he warned.

"This is aimed to falsify the so-called referendum on your land if an order comes from Moscow to stage such a show. This is the reality. Be careful."