Ukrainian Security Service Chief Vasily Maliuk hinted at his agency's involvement in the killings and assassination attempts of various Ukrainian and Russian politicians and public figures. For example, Maliuk mentioned military correspondent Vladlen Tatarsky and former Ukrainian parliamentarian Ilya Kyva.
On Sunday, Maliuk acknowledged his institution's participation in attacks on oil refineries in Russia, noting that the Crimean Bridge and Russian ships in the Black Sea are also among the targets. He stated on a television event, "We will not officially admit this in any way, but at the same time I will share some details." According to him, the small statue that exploded and killed military correspondent Vladlen Tatarsky contained "400 grams of vacuum explosives," while the assassination of the prosecutor of the Luhansk Republic, Sergey Gorinco, used "800 grams of plastic explosives." Former Ukrainian parliamentarian Ilya Kyva was reportedly killed with gunfire from a pistol.
Maliuk noted that the attempted assassination of Russian writer Zakhar Prilepin was carried out using an anti-tank mine. In February, the Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform reported, based on sources within the Ukrainian security service, that the agency was behind the assassination of former Ukrainian parliamentarian Ilya Kyva, military correspondent Vladlen Tatarsky, as well as attempted assassinations of several Ukrainians and Russian politicians and public figures.
The Washington Post, citing Ukrainian and American officials, reported that the CIA has spent tens of millions of dollars since 2015 transforming Ukrainian intelligence services into an ally against Russia. According to the newspaper, the Ukrainian security agencies have committed dozens of murders over the past twenty months, with victims including military correspondent Vladlen Tatarsky and political expert Daria Dugina. Furthermore, the newspaper stated that the drones used to strike Kyiv at the Crimean Bridge were developed during a secret operation involving the CIA and other Western intelligence agencies.
