On Sunday, Russia’s Federal Security Service announced that a suspect in the shooting death of a high-ranking military intelligence officer was apprehended in Dubai and subsequently extradited to Russia.
Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeev was reported hospitalized after being shot multiple times in his apartment in northwestern Moscow, according to Svetlana Petrenko, a spokeswoman for the Investigative Committee.
This incident comes amid a string of assassinations targeting military officials, which Russia attributes to Ukraine.
The FSB identified Lyubomir Korba, a Russian national, as the individual arrested in Dubai on suspicion of the shooting. Additionally, two accomplices were named—one has been detained in Moscow, while the other reportedly fled to Ukraine.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov remarked on Friday that the shooting should be investigated by law enforcement but declared it a clear act of “terrorism” by Ukraine aimed at disrupting peace negotiations.
As of now, there hasn’t been any response from Kyiv regarding these allegations.
The assault occurred just a day after talks between representatives from Russia, Ukraine, and the United States wrapped up in Abu Dhabi, aiming to resolve the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Admiral Igor Koschukov, who oversees military intelligence and is Mr. Alexeev’s superior, led the Russian delegation during these discussions.
Alexeev, aged 64, has served as the first deputy head of the GRU, Russia’s military intelligence agency, since 2011. He received the Order of the Hero of Russia for his contributions to military operations in Syria. Notably, he appeared on state television discussing military matters with Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the Wagner group, during a brief uprising in Rostov-on-Don in June 2023.
Since the onset of the military operation in Ukraine in 2022, Russian authorities have blamed Ukraine for a number of attacks on military personnel and prominent figures within Russia, while Ukraine has claimed responsibility for certain incidents.
One notable case involved the assassination of Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvalov, who was killed in a car bombing in December 2025. In April, another high-ranking official, Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik, died when explosives detonated in a car parked near his residence.
Furthermore, in December 2024, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov was killed by an explosive device concealed within his electric scooter, resulting in multiple fatalities. Ukraine’s security services later took responsibility for that attack.
A Russian man with ties to Ukraine confessed to carrying out the attack on Moskalik, claiming he was hired by Ukrainian intelligence.
Following Moskalik’s assassination, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy mentioned receiving an intelligence report concerning the “elimination” of Russian military leaders, implying that justice was forthcoming.
