Russia has accused Ukraine of carrying out a series of high-profile attacks against prominent Russians since Moscow invaded its neighbor nearly four years ago.
While Kiev has hinted at its involvement in some cases, Ukrainian officials have often stopped short of publicly claiming responsibility. In other cases, they denied any involvement.
A Russian general was killed by a car bomb in Moscow on Monday, and investigators say they are looking into whether Ukraine was behind the attack. Ukraine has not yet commented on the death of Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov.
Other attacks Russia has attributed to Ukraine include:
Lt. General Igor Kirillov
Kirillov, head of the military’s nuclear, biological and chemical protection forces, was killed along with his aide, Ilya Polikarpov, when a bomb on a scooter exploded outside a Moscow apartment building in December 2024.
Kirillov was accused in absentia a day earlier by the Security Service of Ukraine, SBU, of “ordering the use of banned chemical weapons against the Defense Forces of Ukraine.” The SBU later claimed responsibility for the attack. An Uzbek man was quickly arrested and charged with killing Kirillov on behalf of the security service.
Lt. General Yaroslav Moskalik
Moskalik, a deputy chief of the main operational department of the General Staff, was killed in April 2025. A bomb had been planted under his car, which was parked near his apartment building just outside Moscow.
Days after the attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a statement that the country’s Foreign Intelligence Service had informed him of the “removal of senior command staff of Russia’s armed forces,” but gave no further details.
A Russian man who previously lived in Ukraine pleaded guilty to carrying out the attack and said he was paid by Ukraine’s security services.
Stanislav Rzhitsky
Rzhitsky, a former submarine commander, was shot in July 2023 while jogging in Krasnodar, Russia.
Ukrainian media reported that Rzhitsky was one of six submarine commanders capable of launching the long-range missiles that struck Vinnytsia, Ukraine, a year earlier, killing 23 people and injuring more than 100.
When he died, Rzhitsky was deputy head of the military mobilization office in Krasnodar.
Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, denied Kiev’s involvement in the death. However, the agency also released details of the killing, including the time of the attack and the number of shots fired. A dual Russian-Ukrainian citizen was convicted of the October 2024 murder.
Zakhar Prilepin
Prilepin, a Russian nationalist writer, narrowly avoided death in a car bombing in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region in May 2023. His driver was killed, while Prilepin was hospitalized with broken bones, bruised lungs and other injuries.
Prilepin, known for his support in the war, was sanctioned by the European Union.
A Ukrainian man was found guilty of the attack in a Russian court and sentenced to life in prison. Russia’s Investigative Committee accused him of working on orders from Kiev.
In an interview with Ukrainian journalists in March 2024, SBU chief General Vasyl Maliuk refused to claim responsibility for the attack, but said he could provide some details, such as Prilepin’s injuries.
Vladlen Tatarski
Tatarsky, a military blogger, was killed in April 2023 when a bomb ripped through a cafe in central St. Petersburg where he was speaking.
Tatarsky supported the war in Ukraine and filed regular reports from the front for his Telegram followers.
Darya Trepova was convicted of the bombing and sentenced to 27 years in prison after she was seen on camera presenting a small statue to Tatarsky, which exploded shortly afterwards. Trepova testified that she did not know the gift contained a bomb.
In the March 2024 interview, SBU chief Maliuk refused to take responsibility for Tatarsky’s death, but described the blogger as a spokesman for Russia who had “paid a karmic price before the Ukrainian people”. He also provided details about the bomb that killed Tatarsky.
Ilya Kyva
Kyva, a Ukrainian lawmaker who fled to Russia shortly after the full-scale invasion, was found dead near Moscow in December 2023 with a gunshot wound to the head.
A controversial political figure in Ukraine before the war, Kyva often appeared on pro-Kremlin TV talk shows. A month before his death, a Ukrainian court found him guilty of treason and sentenced him to 14 years in prison.
Russia’s State Investigative Committee has accused a businessman of Armenian origin of passing details of Kyva’s movements to the SBU, state news agency Tass said. However, no charges were brought directly related to the killing.
Andriy Yusov, a spokesman for Ukraine’s military intelligence, said after Kyva’s death that “the same fate will befall other traitors to Ukraine,” but did not say who was behind the killing.
Darya Dugina
Dugina was killed in August 2022 when a remote-controlled bomb planted in her SUV exploded while she was driving on the outskirts of Moscow.
Her father, Alexander Dugin, was considered the intended target. The philosopher, writer and political theorist is an ardent supporter of war.
Ukraine has denied responsibility for the attack, with Zelenskyi saying Dugina is “not our responsibility” and Kiev is “not interested in it”.
Russia’s Federal Security Agency, the FSB, publicly identified two Ukrainian nationals as suspects but said they had fled abroad.
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