Ukraine Intelligence Agency: "Assassination Attempt on Putin Two Months Ago Failed"

Assassination Attempt During Visit to the Caucasus Region
Snipers Must Be Accompanied After the Ukraine War

Putin inspects the joint military exercise 'Zapad-2021' with Belarus.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] Ukrainian intelligence authorities have claimed that there was an assassination attempt on Russian President Vladimir Putin following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It is presumed that the attempt took place in the Caucasus region, where deep-seated grudges developed during the 2008 Russian military invasion of Georgia.

According to the British Daily Mail on the 23rd (local time), Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine's Defense Intelligence Agency, stated at a press conference that "President Putin was targeted by an assassination attack about two months ago when he visited the southern Russian Caucasus area," adding, "Although this incident is not well known, the assassination attempt failed."

If Budanov's claim is true, this would be the only assassination attempt that has occurred since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine on February 24. However, Budanov explained, "This incident does not appear to be directly related to the Ukraine war," and added, "Putin has many enemies in the Caucasus region as well."

Previously, Russia had been at odds with Islamic forces in the region, starting with its 2008 invasion of Georgia in the Caucasus. According to the Daily Mail, since the outbreak of the war with Ukraine, President Putin is known to always be accompanied by snipers during outdoor activities to prevent assassination risks.

Earlier, in a 2017 interview with documentary filmmaker Oliver Stone, President Putin revealed that he had survived numerous assassination attempts, stating that there had been a total of five attempts. At that time, Putin explained the reason he was still alive by saying, "I personally manage my own security."