Russia spent vast sums on collaborators before the Ukraine war. Most took the money and ran, report says. | Business Insider

, the Ukrainian former opposition leader and longtime Kremlin ally, to help him bolster native support for Russia's invasion, the FT reported. to become his puppet leader in UkraineAccording to the FT, Medvedchuk tried to convince Putin that Ukrainians would welcome Russian forces — prompting Putin to send large amounts of cash his way in order to pay off local officials and build a collaborator network.

With that supposed wellspring of pro-Russian support in Ukraine, the Kremlin envisioned installing Medvedchuk as leader the moment Kyiv had fallen. But none of this happened. Some of the paid-off collaborators assisted the invasion, and helped in the swift capture of areas including Kherson, in southern Ukraine, but most either disappeared with the cash or reported the plan to Ukrainian authorities, the FT reported.

Ukraine has had to grapple with the presence of collaborators, many of whom spring from the pro-Russian minority that, in many parts of the country, held only small sway ahead of the invasion.with the enemy as of last fall. But none of it was enough to produce the groundswell that Medvedchuk so confidently depicted to Putin, the FT reported.

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