MOSCOW, March 9. /TASS/. The Russian Defense Ministry has published a secret order for an offensive against Donbass in March 2022, issued by the commander of the Ukrainian National Guard, Defense Ministry Spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov told reporters on Wednesday.

"The Russian Defense Ministry has published an original order issued by Commander of the Ukrainian National Guard Colonel General Nikolay Balan on January 22, 2022," he said.

Konashenkov emphasized that "the order, handed down to the commanding officers of the Ukrainian National Guard, contains a detailed plan for preparing a strike group to carry out an offensive in the area of the so-called ‘Joint Forces Operation’ in Donbass."

"The document establishes a battalion tactical group of the National Guard’s Fourth Operational Brigade, ensures the provision of necessary supplies and resubordinates it to the 80th Separate Airborne Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. I would like to point out that since 2016, the brigade has been trained by US and British instructors in Lvov in accordance with NATO training programs," the Russian Defense Ministry spokesman stressed.

Konashenkov added that the order instructed the deputy head of the National Guard to ensure the combat coordination of the battalion tactical group with the 80th Separate Airborne Assault Brigade on February 7-28.