President giving away few details of alleged Russia-linked coup plot

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has alleged that a group of Russians and Ukrainians planned to attempt a coup in Ukraine next month, and that the plotters tried to enlist the help of the country’s richest man, Rinat Akhmetov.

Zelensky said audio recordings obtained by Ukraine’s security services caught the plotters discussing their plans and mentioning Akhmetov’s name.

Akhmetov was not involved in the purported coup plot, however, Zelensky said.

He offered no other details, leaving many questions about his motives for making the allegations public and what possible actions authorities have taken.

Akhmetov, a mining and steel tycoon, also owns media holdings, which in recent weeks have increased their criticism of Zelensky and his administration.

A statement attributed to Akhmetov called Zelensky’s claims ‘‘an absolute lie’’. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied any Russian role in an alleged plot.

Zelensky’s comments come against a backdrop of rising tensions between Kyiv and Moscow. Western and Ukrainian officials have observed a buildup of Russian forces on the country’s border with Ukraine.

The reasons for the buildup are

unclear, but United States and other officials say it could be preparation for an invasion or an escalation in the seven-year-old conflict in eastern Ukraine with anti-Kyiv insurgents, backed by Moscow.

Zelensky said the alleged coup was being planned for December 1 or 2. He gave no further details.

Ukrainian media in recent weeks have commented on growing tensions between Zelensky and Akhmetov. Zelensky has launched a ‘‘de-oligarchisation’’campaign to reduce the political influence of Ukraine’s richest people, who control key sections of the country’s economy.

Zelensky said his country was prepared for any scenario in the volatile east. He added, however, that the number of Russian forces was smaller than during a buildup in the northern spring this year, an episode that also caused concern about a possible Russian offensive.

Zelensky said Ukraine had received promises of support ‘‘in public and not in public’’ from its Western partners if Russia were to take military action, but he did not provide details.

Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg yesterday warned Russia that any attempt to invade Ukraine would have consequences.

‘‘If Russia uses force against Ukraine, that will have costs,’’ Stoltenberg said, ahead of a meeting of the 30-nation military alliance’s foreign ministers in Latvia.

Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula in 2014, after the country’s Moscow-friendly president was driven from power by mass protests. Weeks later, Russia threw its weight behind a separatist insurgency that broke out in Ukraine’s east.

A 2015 peace agreement brokered by France and Germany helped to end large-scale battles, but efforts to reach a political settlement have failed, and sporadic skirmishes have continued along the tense line of contact.