Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Monday that Ukraine’s Security Service had ordered an attempt to assassinate General Vladimir Alexeyev, according to Interfax.
The FSB also alleged that Polish intelligence played a role in recruiting the suspect, but offered no evidence to support the claims.
However, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha rejected any link to the shooting, telling Reuters, "We don't know what happened with that particular general - maybe it was their own internal Russian in-fighting."
Russian authorities say Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev, deputy head of the Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), was shot three times with a Makarov pistol fitted with a silencer.
The attack took place on Friday in an apartment block on the Volokolamsk highway in northern Moscow.
Alexeyev, 64, underwent surgery and has regained consciousness, his wife told a Russian blogger, saying he is "able to talk".
Meanwhile, a Ukrainian-born Russian citizen was extradited to Moscow from Dubai on Sunday on suspicion of gravely injuring one of Russia's most senior intelligence officers, according to Russian security officials and investigators.
Investigators described the suspect as a Russian citizen born in the Ternopil region of Soviet Ukraine and alleged that Ukrainian intelligence had tasked him with the shooting. Kyiv has denied any involvement.
Russian media broadcast a video of masked FSB officers escorting a blindfolded man from a small jet in darkness.
The FSB said two alleged accomplices were also identified: one was detained in Moscow while another fled to Ukraine, according to investigators.
President Vladimir Putin thanked UAE leader Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for his assistance in the detention, according to Russia's foreign ministry.
The United Arab Emirates has not disclosed how the suspect was apprehended.
The attack occurred just 12 km north of the Kremlin and has sparked questions inside Russia over how a senior intelligence figure could be tracked and targeted.
Alexeyev is one of the most prominent officials involved in Russia's military operations in Ukraine.
GRU chief Admiral Igor Kostyukov is currently leading Russia’s delegation in security-related talks with Ukraine in Abu Dhabi.
Since December 2024, three officials of Alexeyev’s rank have been killed in or near Moscow.
Behind the front lines, Russia and Ukraine have been engaged in what Russian officials call a "hybrid" shadow conflict involving cyber operations, disinformation, covert sabotage and targeted killings.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said President Putin had been briefed and that Russia’s intelligence services were investigating.
“It is clear that military commanders and high-level specialists are at risk during wartime,” he said.
The GRU’s influence spans covert overseas networks, special forces and advanced cyber units.
Jailed Russian nationalist Igor Girkin, a former FSB officer who has criticised Russia’s military leadership, praised Alexeyev’s "energy and courage" but called the attack a major setback.
"This is a serious blow to our special services," he said on Telegram on Sunday (8 February).
Alexeyev became widely known during Yevgeny Prigozhin’s failed Wagner mutiny in June 2023, when he appeared attempting to calm the mercenary chief.
In a widely shared video, Prigozhin said he had come to seize the then-defence minister Sergei Shoigu and General Valery Gerasimov.
Alexeyev responded, "Take them then," with a brief chuckle.
The mutiny collapsed and Prigozhin died two months later in a plane crash in August caused by hand grenades detonating inside the aircraft according to President Putin.
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As the Ukraine war is highlighted by some leaders during the United Nations' 81st General Assembly meeting in New York, Russian forces attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Thursday with ballistic missiles, killing two people and injuring six, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in New York on Wednesday, as Washington pushes for an end to the war in Ukraine and Kyiv and Moscow continue to strike energy infrastructure.
U.S. President Donald Trump is addressing the UN General Assembly as world leaders gather in New York for the 81st session. Conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, global security and diplomacy set to dominate the event.
U.S. President Donald Trump said his team held a three-hour meeting with an Iranian delegation in New York that he described as “very good” and “productive”, with another round of talks scheduled soon.
The 81st UN General Assembly continues in New York on Wednesday, with another day of high-level speeches and diplomatic meetings. The wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, global security and international cooperation remain at the centre of discussions.
As the Ukraine war is highlighted by some leaders during the United Nations' 81st General Assembly meeting in New York, Russian forces attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Thursday with ballistic missiles, killing two people and injuring six, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
Australia says an OpenAI AI agent gained unauthorised access to a government Medicare statistics portal in June, in what officials say could be an unprecedented case of an AI system breaching a government network.
Pakistan says it carried out air strikes on 10 locations in Afghanistan on Thursday, targeting sites it said were used to store and launch drones, as tensions between the two neighbouring countries continued to escalate.
Here’s your AnewZ Daily Brief for 24 September 2026, with five key developments from the second day of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.
A federal judge ordered U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday to restore White House access for journalists from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico, saying his ban on the three media outlets was likely unconstitutional.
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