Pictured: Female ‘Russian spy’ detained for ‘plotting to assassinate Ukrainian president Zelensky in an airstrike’
A suspected Russian spy has been captured after a plot to kill Ukraine’s president in an airstrike arose.
Official sources in Kiev said the woman was caught red-handed trying to pass Volodymyr Zelensky’s travel plans to the Kremlin.
She was intercepted the night before he was due to visit the Mykolaiv province of southern Ukraine. If found guilty of espionage, she faces up to 12 years in prison.
Based on the inside information she obtained, Russia apparently planned to launch a precision missile with the aim of killing Mr. Zelensky.
Since the start of the conflict last year, he has survived at least 12 assassination attempts, some of which were pre-identified by Western intelligence agencies.
The woman, in the center of the photo, was detained by the Ukrainian Security Service (SSU) over an alleged plot to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelensky
President Zelensky, pictured at a NATO leaders’ summit in Lithuania in July, has survived 12 assassination attempts since Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine
Killing or capturing Mr. Zelensky was a priority for Russia in the early days of the invasion, when it hoped to install a puppet regime.
He is known to have turned down an invitation from the US to fly out of Ukraine for his own safety, saying, “I need ammunition, not a ride.”
Since then, more plots have emerged involving insiders and Chechen mercenaries.
The Wagner paramilitary group may also be planning a mission to take out Mr. Zelensky.
The suspected spy is a resident of the fishing town of Ochakiv, near where the president was due to visit in July.
She allegedly used her local connections to inquire about Mr. Zelensky’s itinerary.
She also identified ammunition depots, electronic warfare installations and other Ukrainian military facilities.
The woman, who previously worked in a military clothing store, was arrested before the information was handed over.
She remains in custody.
Yesterday, a spokesman for Ukraine’s security service, which released footage of the arrest, said: “The SSU caught the traitor in the act of trying to pass on information to the invaders.
“To gather intelligence, the enemy agent drove into the target area and took photographs or video footage of Ukrainian facilities.”
Pictured: President Zelensky with Ukrainian military personnel during his visit to Ochakiv in the Mykolaiv region last month
Her arrest and court appearance came as Russia continued its aerial bombings of Ukrainian cities — but with only partial success thanks to the air defense systems of the US and Germany.
Russia denies targeting civilian infrastructure, saying damage to residential areas and medical facilities is caused by a breakdown in Ukrainian defense systems.
Meanwhile, Poland sends another 1,000 troops to the border with Belarus to counter Wagner’s threat.
Soldiers from the group of mercenaries have appeared near the border and may have destabilized NATO’s eastern flank.
The number of people trying to enter Poland illegally from Belarus has also risen in recent months.
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