Russia’s FSB security service said Thursday that it foiled two plots to assassinate senior military officers, accusing Ukrainian intelligence of recruiting a young Moscow woman and a Russian ex-convict living in Ukraine to carry out the attacks.
In separate statements, the FSB claimed “Western handlers” were behind the alleged plots, which were also said to involve drone attacks on military infrastructure and a defense manufacturing facility.
In Moscow, the FSB said it arrested a 25-year-old Russian woman on accusations of seeking out targets in the Russian capital and St. Petersburg after being recruited by Ukrainian intelligence via WhatsApp in 2024.
According to the Russian intelligence agency, the woman rented an apartment in Moscow and tracked the movements of a military official. It did not reveal the official’s name.
The woman, who was not identified, was said to have stored disguises and food in the rented apartment so that it could be used as a safe house for the alleged assassin, who was scheduled to arrive after she left Russia through Turkey and Moldova.
