Russian Security Forces Allegedly Target Zelensky and other Ukrainian Officials in Failed Assassination Plot

Russian security forces have targeted Ukrainian President Zelensky and other senior officials in a failed assassination plot, according to the Security Service of Ukraine. Two senior officers recruited by Russia were tasked with gathering real-time updates on the location of Ukrainian officials and recruiting collaborators within the Ukrainian army to help carry out the mission.

One of the tasks given to the officers by the FSB was to find army collaborators who could potentially take Zelensky hostage and assassinate him. In addition to targeting Zelensky, the FSB also planned to eliminate Vasil Maliuk, head of the SBU, and Kirilo Budanov, head of the GRU. The plan included launching missile and UAV attacks on Budanov, with the goal of assassinating him before Orthodox Easter.

The Ukrainian authorities described the planned assassination as a failure by Russia’s security services. The two senior officers were accused of treason and one was also charged with planning an act of terrorism. In a video message released by Ukrainian security services, one of the accused admitted to receiving weapons and instructions from the Russian security service.

This operation is just one example of many attempted by Russia since the start of the war in Ukraine. Several previous attempts have been made to locate and eliminate Ukrainian officials, including Zelensky and Budanov. The recruitment of mercenaries and use of missile and UAV attacks have been reported in previous attempts. This latest plot is seen as one of the most carefully planned and executed by Russian security forces.