Kyiv, Ukraine Ukrainian counterintelligence investigators foiled a Russian plot to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelensky and other prominent military and political figures, the Ukrainian state security service announced Tuesday. A statement said that two officers of the Ukrainian State Guard, which protects senior officials, were arrested on suspicion of carrying out the plan drawn up by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB).
The colonel had been recruited before Massive Russian invasion of Ukraine In February 2022, according to the statement.
It quoted the head of the State Security Service, Fasil Malik, as saying that the plot was anticipating an attack before Russian President Vladimir Putin was inaugurated for a fifth term on Tuesday. Malik said he personally supervised the top-secret operation to track down the plot.
Ukrainian Allegations of Russian efforts to kill Zelensky Not new. Zelensky said that in 2022, there were at least 10 attempts on his life, and now the war with Russia has extended into its third year.
Prosecutors in Poland also said last month that a Polish man had been arrested on charges of preparing to spy for Russian military intelligence in an alleged plot to assassinate Zelensky.
Zelensky’s movements remain secret for security reasons, and his visits throughout the country are not announced until after his departure. News of his events in Kiev is usually censored until they are over.
Zelensky has proven to be a valuable asset to his country as the war against Ukraine’s larger neighbor continues, and as Kiev’s depleted forces wait for more troops and weapons. He urged his people to keep fighting and instilled the belief that Ukraine could win.
The Ukrainian statement said that Russian intelligence agents who targeted Zelensky sought out members of the Ukrainian military close to the president’s security detail and who could hold the head of state hostage and later kill him. It added that the operation was conducted from Moscow, and provided the names of three alleged Russian spies behind the plot.
The broader plan was to locate senior Ukrainian officials and target them with a missile attack, followed by drones and missiles.
The statement said that the two Ukrainian colonels were arrested on charges of treason, a charge punishable by up to life imprisonment.
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