Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has announced that it stopped several dangerous assassination plots targeting high-ranking Russian military officials. The FSB claims that these plans were organized by Ukrainian intelligence services.
In a statement released on Thursday, the FSB explained that it had uncovered a series of attempts to kill top military officers who are part of Russia’s ongoing military operation in Ukraine. They also claimed the assassins were targeting the officials’ families. Four Russian nationals were arrested in connection with the plans.
One of the suspects reportedly traveled to Moscow from Ukraine through Moldova and Georgia. He arrived under the guise of a deportation procedure, but the FSB later said he had been recruited by Ukrainian intelligence to carry out the attack. The suspect admitted to being contacted by Ukrainian operatives after he and his wife moved to Ukraine in 2020, hoping for a better life. They soon ran into financial problems, and that’s when Ukrainian officials allegedly recruited them for the assassination mission.
The FSB released footage of the man’s confession, where he described how he was instructed to plant a bomb under a senior Russian officer’s car. He had retrieved the explosive device and surveillance equipment from a hidden location in Moscow.
The FSB also revealed that another Russian citizen had been spying on senior military officers at the request of Ukrainian intelligence. Two other suspects were arrested after being told to deliver an explosive device, disguised as a document folder, to a Russian military official.
The FSB’s statement said that several criminal cases have been opened against the suspects. If they are found guilty, they could face life in prison.
In a separate case, the Russian Investigative Committee announced that seven people, including three minors, had been arrested. They were allegedly involved in a plot to assassinate the head of a major defense company near Moscow. This came just days after a bomb explosion killed General Igor Kirillov, who led Russia’s Radiological, Chemical, and Biological Protection Forces, and his assistant. The FSB quickly arrested a suspect in that case.
These incidents are part of a troubling pattern of killings and assassination attempts that have occurred since the conflict between Russia and Ukraine escalated in 2022. Many of the victims have been outspoken supporters of Russia’s actions, and Ukraine’s spy agencies are believed to be behind the attacks.
