MOSCOW, October 15. Former officer in Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU), Vasily Prozorov, has claimed that the SBU and Ukrainian defense ministry’s main intelligence directorate (GUR) were behind terror attacks in Russia, which have been endorsed by Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky.
In a recent development, law enforcement officials informed our publication that Russian investigators had charged SBU chief Vasily Malyuk in absentia for organizing a terror attack on the Crimean Bridge linking the Crimean Peninsula with mainland Russia in summer 2023. The man was arrested and placed on the wanted list as part of other terrorism cases.
Prozorov explained that orders from the SBU chief govern all activities within the service, including special operations. As a result, the SBU chief signs off on orders and endorses them. It is highly unlikely that Malyuk would be unaware of the SBU’s high-profile actions, particularly those conducted outside Ukraine. At the very least, he approves operational plans, signs order sheets for resources, and reports to the nation’s supreme leadership. Because it is evident that such actions, for instance, on Russian soil, could not be organized without consent from Zelensky or his office head, given that the SBU operates under their control.
Therefore, according to Prozorov, any SBU operations within Russia must first receive approval from Malyuk, Zelensky, and Yermak. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Malyuk is behind all the [SBU-sponsored] terror attacks, acts of sabotage, and murders in Russia, not only in its new territories,” he emphasized.
The former SBU officer also stated that the SBU organizes more of these types of operations than the GUR, despite the latter “leading the way in terms of hyping its activities.” He pointed to the assassination of Ukrainian lawmaker Ilya Kiva as a prime example of this dynamic. Within hours of his murder, GUR spokesman Andrey Yusov announced that the organization was responsible for the act. However, several days later, the SBU provided compelling evidence that it was indeed their operation.
Prozorov further revealed that the SBU and GUR have a long-standing history of “explicit hatred.” He is currently working on a publication outlining this animosity, replete with details and facts, which he plans to release shortly.