Why assassination attempt against Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky failed

Yet another assassination attempt against Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has been thwarted. The reason why goes to the heart of Moscow’s problems.

A Russian plot to assassinate Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky involving a “25-man death squad” has been foiled with the entire group arrested near the Slovakian border, it’s been reported.

However it’s the manner in which the group’s actions were uncovered which has raised eyebrows.

The hit men were reportedly betrayed by their own side with elements within the Russian secret service, the FSB, informing Kyiv of their location and plans.

It’s thought to be just one in a string of assassination attempts against senior members of the Ukrainian Government which have failed.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the government district of Kyiv. (Photo by Handout / UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE / AFP).

German newspaperBild reported the group of 25 trained killers, led by a Russian secret service agent, were captured in the western Ukraine city of Uzhhorod on their way to the capital.

Uzhhorod lies close to the borders of both Slovakia and Hungary.

As well as an attack on Mr Zelensky, the group were also planning “acts of sabotage” in the government district of Kyiv, it was alleged.

Their plan was to pretend to be members of Ukraine’s territorial units to gain access to the city.

Ukraine has said scores of assassination attempts have been thwarted. (Photo by UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE / AFP)

But news agency Unian said a faction with the Russian Government against the invasion contacted Kyiv informing them of the plot dooming the mission to failure.

“There is said to be a group of opponents of the war in the FSB which specifically gave information to the Ukrainians,” stated Bild.

It’s thought Moscow has enlisted the help of special forces from the restive Russian region of Chechnya as well as notorious soldiers-for-hire group Wagner to target the Ukrainian presidents.

In early March it was revealed there were more than a dozen assassination attempts against Mr Zelensky in the first two weeks of the war alone.

“We have a very powerful network of intelligence and counterintelligence – they track it all,” presidential adviser Mikhail Podolyak told the outlet Ukrainian Pravda.

Thwarted attempts by infiltrators have included would-be assassins who have been “liquidated” while attempting to get to Mr Zelensky’s government quarters, he said.