Budanov Says Russian FSB Assigned to Eliminate Prigozhin

Following an attempted armed rebellion in Russia, the country’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has been assigned the task of eliminating Yevhen Prigozhin, the owner of the private military company “Wagner.” 

This statement was made by Kyrylo Budanov, the head of the Main Directorate of Intelligence (HUR) of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, in an interview with American journalist Howard Altman.

The Ukrainian intelligence press service reported this information on Friday, June 30, via Telegram.

According to the head of Ukraine’s HUR, the Russian special services have been given the assignment to assassinate the Wagner PMC leader. 

“We are aware that the FSB has been tasked with killing Prigozhin. Will they succeed? Only time will tell. In any case, any potential assassination attempts will not happen quickly.”

Budanov said that the Russian special services would require some time to develop suitable strategies and reach a stage where they are prepared for a large-scale operation.

“However…there are significant question marks. Will they be able to execute it? Will they have the courage to carry out this order?” the HUR chief said.

Budanov confirmed that Ukrainian military intelligence had been aware of the intention to carry out a mutiny within the Russian Federation for a considerable time.

“We can’t claim that they had a significant impact on Russia’s war against Ukraine, as these events were of short duration. Nevertheless, some damage was inflicted upon the military and space forces of the Russian Federation,” Budanov said. 

“We don’t anticipate the appearance of Wagner PMC in Ukraine as an independent entity conducting its own operations. And I consider this factor to be quite important for us.”

According to Budanov, the Wagner mercenaries have proven to be a more formidable fighting force compared to the regular army of the aggressor state.

The Ukrainian intelligence chief also noted that, as a result of Prigozhin’s brief rebellion, eight Russian military aircraft were destroyed, including the high-value asset airborne command post Il-22M aircraft.