Russian authorities announced on Sunday that the individual suspected of shooting a deputy chief of Russia’s military intelligence agency in Moscow had been apprehended in Dubai and extradited to Russia. They alleged that the perpetrator was acting on behalf of Ukraine.
The deputy chief, Lt. Gen. Vladimir Alekseyev, was taken to the hospital after being shot multiple times on Friday at an apartment complex in northwestern Moscow, according to Investigative Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko. This incident occurred following a series of targeted killings of high-ranking military officials that Russia has attributed to Ukraine.
The Federal Security Service (FSB) disclosed that a Russian citizen named Lyubomir Korba was detained in Dubai under suspicion of carrying out the attack. The FSB also identified two alleged accomplices, one of whom was arrested in Moscow while the other reportedly fled to Ukraine.
Russia’s Investigative Committee revealed on the Telegram messaging platform that Korba arrived in Moscow in December with instructions from Ukrainian intelligence services to carry out a terrorist operation.
In response to the incident, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov characterized it as a potential “terrorist act” orchestrated by Ukraine to disrupt peace negotiations. There was no immediate reaction from Kyiv regarding the Russian accusations.
The shooting occurred shortly after peace talks involving Russian, Ukrainian, and U.S. representatives concluded in Abu Dhabi, with the aim of resolving the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. The Russian delegation, led by Alekseyev’s superior, military intelligence chief Admiral Igor Kostyukov, participated in the discussions.
Alekseyev, aged 64, has held the position of the first deputy head of Russia’s military intelligence agency, known as the GRU, since 2011. He was previously honored with the Hero of Russia medal for his contributions to Moscow’s military operations in Syria.
Furthermore, a deadly Russian airstrike hit eastern Ukraine overnight, resulting in one fatality and two injuries, as confirmed by officials on Sunday. The attack targeted the city of Kramatorsk in Ukraine’s Donetsk region, causing a fire in a nine-story residential building.
Additionally, Russia conducted strikes on energy infrastructure in Ukraine’s Poltava region, according to Serhii Koretskyi, the CEO of Ukraine’s state-owned gas company, Naftogaz. This action is part of Russia’s strategy to undermine Ukraine’s resilience by targeting its power grid, particularly during the winter months, a tactic referred to by Kyiv officials as “weaponizing winter.”
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy revealed that the U.S. has set a deadline for Ukraine and Russia to reach a peace agreement by June. Failure to meet this deadline may lead to increased pressure from the U.S. administration on both sides to expedite the resolution of the conflict.