Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) said Sunday it killed two suspected Russian agents believed responsible for the assassination of SBU Colonel Ivan Voronych in Kyiv last week.
Voronych was shot multiple times Thursday morning in Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district. Surveillance footage shows a masked gunman approaching him in a residential parking lot and firing several rounds with a silenced handgun before fleeing on foot.
In a statement, the SBU said the killing was carried out by two individuals—a man and a woman. After assassinating Voronych, the suspects tried to go into hiding, but SBU and National Police officers tracked them down in Kyiv Oblast.
“During the attempt to detain them, they resisted arrest, leading to an exchange of fire. The perpetrators were eliminated,” said SBU head Vasyl Malyuk. “I want to remind everyone—the only outcome for enemies on Ukrainian soil is death.”
Moscow has not commented on the incident.
The SBU has expanded its operations beyond domestic counterintelligence since Russia’s 2022 invasion, conducting sabotage missions and targeted killings.
Ukrainian sources told the BBC the SBU was responsible for the December 2024 killing of Russian General Igor Kirillov and the April car bombing of General Yaroslav Moskalik in Moscow, though Kyiv has not officially confirmed these actions.
The operation took place as Russia intensifies its attacks. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia has launched more than 1,800 long-range drones, over 1,200 glide bombs, and 83 missiles at Ukraine in the past week. The largest assault occurred on Wednesday, when Russia launched its biggest drone attack on Ukrainian territory to date, with Ukraine intercepting more than 700 drones.
Earlier this week, U.S. President Donald Trump, who had previously positioned himself as a mediator in the conflict, voiced disappointment with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the intensified attacks.
“We get a lot of bullshit thrown at us by Putin,” Trump said. “He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
Shortly after Trump’s remarks, the United States resumed deliveries of artillery shells and mobile rocket artillery missiles to Ukraine, according to Reuters.
