Ukrainian Suspect Detained for Deadly Moscow Car Bomb Attack on General

The FSB has detained a Ukrainian suspect allegedly responsible for killing General Yaroslav Moskalik with a car bomb in Moscow, escalating tensions amid the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Russian security forces have arrested a detainee identified as a Ukrainian spy, accused of orchestrating a fatal car bomb attack that claimed the life of a senior Russian general. The Federal Security Service (FSB) disclosed that they apprehended a man named Ignat Kuzi, purportedly working for Ukrainian special services, who is suspected of planting explosives in a Volkswagen Golf to assassinate General Yaroslav Moskalik. The general, who had served as the deputy head of the military's General Staff, was killed while returning to his residence in Balashikha, a suburb of Moscow.

According to the FSB, Kuzi had created a homemade explosive device and managed to detonate it remotely from Ukraine. The accusation comes without any official response from Ukrainian authorities regarding the bombing. Sources suggest that Kuzi was recruited by Ukrainian intelligence earlier in 2023 and traveled to Moscow in September.

As part of their investigation, Russian media reported that the FSB aired footage featuring the suspect appearing to confess to his involvement, showcasing the handover process along with the bomb's components. Following the incident, the Kremlin asserted that Ukraine continues to engage in acts of terrorism within Russian territory. Notably, General Moskalik had previously represented Russia in negotiations with Ukraine, including discussions in Paris in 2015 leading to the unsuccessful Minsk agreements, aimed at resolving the ongoing conflict in the Donbas region that began in 2014. The situation escalates further against the backdrop of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which commenced in February 2022.