'Only one prospect for the enemy, death': Top Russian agents killed after brazen assassination of Ukrainian colonel in Kyiv, says SBU

Ukraine’s intelligence agency, the SBU, has announced that it has killed two Russian agents believed to be behind the recent assassination of a senior Ukrainian officer, Colonel Ivan Voronych. He was shot several times in broad daylight in a parking lot in Kyiv last Thursday. The SBU described the assassination as one of the boldest attacks on a high-ranking Ukrainian official since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022.

How were the suspects found?

The SBU said the two suspects, a man and a woman, were working for Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB). They had tracked Col Voronych’s daily routine, studied his travel routes, and used a pistol with a silencer retrieved from a hidden weapons cache to kill him.

After the killing, the suspects attempted to remain hidden. But following a joint investigation with Ukraine’s national police, the duo were located and killed during a special operation on Sunday morning, after resisting arrest and opening fire.

Ukrainian says, “Only one prospect for the enemy, death”

The head of the SBU, Lt Gen Vasyl Malyuk, personally led the operation and later released a video message at the site of the raid. He said, “I would like to remind you that the only prospect of the enemy on the territory of Ukraine is death.” Video footage showed the bodies of the two agents lying on the ground, partially concealed by branches and grass. Ukrainian police confirmed the two were “citizens of a foreign country,” without naming them. Russia has not issued any official response yet.

What do we know about the assassination?

The attack took place just after 9:00 am local time in Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district, according to CCTV footage verified by Reuters. Col Voronych was approached by a gunman as he left a building, and was shot at close range. The assailant then fled the scene. The SBU had earlier described the incident as the work of a lone shooter, but later clarified that two people had worked together on the killing under Russian orders.

Voronych reportedly played a key role in sabotage missions inside Russia, which may have made him a high-priority target. Russian military bloggers and commentators praised the killing. One, war correspondent Aleksandr Kots, said on Telegram, “The enemy must be afraid on his own territory.”

Why does this matter?

Ukraine rarely makes public announcements about its internal counterintelligence operations. The decision to reveal this case and claim the deaths of two Russian agents signals how seriously Kyiv is treating Russia’s efforts to carry out assassinations inside Ukraine. Lt Gen Malyuk said that “about 85 per cent” of attempted Russian operations inside Ukraine are foiled, a claim that could not be independently confirmed.

While Ukraine has successfully targeted several top Russian officials, including generals and a senior naval commander, Russia has had fewer successes with similar missions inside Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that the killing of Col Voronych came during one of the most brutal weeks of the war. Over seven days, he said, Russia had launched more than 1,800 drones, 1,200 glide bombs, and 83 missiles at Ukraine.