Ukrainian authorities said Tuesday they had foiled a Russian plot to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelensky and several senior military officials playing a key role in kyiv’s resistance to the Russian invasion.
The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) announced that it had “dismantled a network of agents” from the Russian security services (FSB) who were preparing “the assassination of the Ukrainian president”. Two colonels are accused of “high treason” and “preparations for a terrorist attack”. But what is it about? What is this gift story? 20 minutes explains everything to you.
What do the Ukrainian authorities say?
Two Ukrainian state service colonels providing security for public officials “were arrested a few days ago,” a source within Ukrainian law enforcement announced Tuesday. These two officials allegedly “transmitted confidential information” to Russia. In particular, they would have wanted to recruit soldiers “close” to President Zelensky’s security service in order to “take him hostage and kill him”.
In a video published by the SBU (the Ukrainian secret service), a man with a blurred face says that he had to recommend to the FSB (Russian successor to the Soviet KGB) a person ready to “block” the president, probably at the time when he- he was going to record his traditional evening speech. One of the members of this supposed network is said to have obtained drones and explosives.
What is this “gift” thing?
This network had planned the “liquidation” of Kyrylo Boudanov this week. The man is credited for risky military operations on Russian soil and his death was said to have been a “gift” to Vladimir Putin for his inauguration on Tuesday. For payment, one of the arrested colonels was allegedly given the task of observing a building where Kyrylo Boudanov was to arrive by car. He then had to pass this information to the FSB so that Moscow could strike the site with a missile.
It was then supposed to launch a drone attack against possible survivors after which a second Russian missile was to be sent to “cover the tracks”. On an audio recording published by the SBU, the voice of a man presented as an FSB official can be heard giving instructions to his interlocutor who asks him how long he will have to leave the site before the strike.
Is this surprising?
kyiv has repeatedly denounced assassination attempts against its president and other senior officials or their relatives. In April, for example, a man suspected of helping Russian intelligence prepare an attack against Volodymyr Zelensky was arrested in Poland, according to Polish and Ukrainian prosecutors.
Russia has repeatedly been accused of killing Kremlin adversaries at home and abroad, but has always rejected the allegations. It has long been known to have agents in the Ukrainian army and security apparatus. Even if Ukraine’s resistance to the Russian attack and the failure of the offensive on kyiv in the spring of 2022 showed the limits of Moscow’s secret services.