Zelenskiy Orders Probe Into Kyiv SBU-HUR Shootout

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has ordered an investigation into a violent confrontation between two of Ukraine’s security agencies after a shootout in central Kyiv left three military intelligence officers injured.

Zelenskiy said Thursday that the internal investigation would establish why a dispute involving the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the Defence Ministry’s HUR Military Intelligence Directorate escalated into gunfire earlier this week.

The confrontation is linked to the disappearance of a Russian nationalist activist who has been fighting alongside Ukrainian forces during the ongoing war with Russia. The activist was missing for nine days before resurfacing.

According to the activist, he had been detained by the SBU and pressured into signing a confession stating that he had cooperated with Russian intelligence. He later withdrew the statement.

Tensions escalated Tuesday after authorities searched the activist’s home in Kyiv. During the subsequent street confrontation, SBU officers opened fire on members of an HUR unit, injuring three intelligence personnel.

The SBU has defended its actions, saying its officers were attempting to prevent an alleged Russian-backed plot to assassinate anti-Kremlin Russian activists living in Kyiv.

“It is important that the truth come out. And that situations like this do not recur,” Zelenskiy said during his nightly video address.

The Ukrainian president said the conduct of both agencies and their leadership would be evaluated after the internal investigation is completed.

“An assessment of the heads of these two agencies – the SBU and the HUR – will be made based on the results of an internal investigation,” Zelenskiy said, adding that both sides should be held accountable because their actions should not have occurred.

Two servicemen connected to the SBU and HUR have received formal notices of suspicion over the incident.

Zelenskiy has also dismissed Oleh Khramov, the head of the SBU department responsible for protecting state secrets, as Ukrainian authorities examine the circumstances surrounding the Kyiv security agency clash.