Kyiv: Ukraine said it has foiled a Russian plot to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other top military and political figures. Two Ukrainian colonels accused of participating in the plot have been arrested on suspicion of treason.
The Ukrainian domestic intelligence agency, the SBU, said in a statement that the plot had involved a network of agents — including the two colonels — that was run by Russia’s Federal Security Service, or FSB, the main successor to the KGB. According to the SBU, the agents working at Russia’s direction were tasked with identifying people close to Zelenskyy’s security detail who could take him hostage and later kill him.
The agency’s statement said the other top Ukrainian officials targeted in the plot included Vasyl Malyuk, the head of the SBU, and Gen. Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Ukraine’s military intelligence agency. The Ukrainian claims could not be independently verified.
It is not the first time that Ukraine has reported a potential assassination attempt aimed at its top leaders. Zelenskyy said in an interview with an Italian television channel this year that his security services had told him of more than 10 such efforts.
In a video released by the security services, a man identified as one of the colonels, his face blurred, describes details of the apparent plot that involved blocking Zelenskyy as he entered or left a building. The authenticity of the video could not be independently confirmed.
