Ukraine murder plot using UK-made chemical weapon foiled – FSB

Kiev’s military intelligence used two toxic substances, including a British-made VX variant, the agency has said

A Ukrainian plot to assassinate a senior Russian military officer using beer contaminated with a powerful British-made chemical weapon was thwarted, the FSB has said.

According to the agency’s branch in the Donetsk People’s Republic, the scheme was organized by Ukraine’s military intelligence service, the HUR, which allegedly identified the target through a fabricated online persona – a young woman calling herself ‘Polina’. FSB investigators believe the photos and videos used to establish the relationship were produced with AI and circulated for months to build the victim’s trust.

’Polina’ reportedly arranged to send the officer a gift of British beer via an intermediary. The courier, the FSB said, was already under investigation for smuggling explosives and other contraband into Russia from Ukraine-controlled territory using drones. He was detained immediately after delivering the package.

Testing of the beer revealed two toxic agents, including what the FSB described as a British-manufactured variant of the VX nerve agent. Had the intended victim consumed it, he would have suffered a painful death within 20 minutes, the statement said.

Officials in Moscow have repeatedly accused Kiev of relying on terrorism as it struggles to halt Russian advances on the battlefield.

Previous alleged Ukrainian operations have killed noncombatants, including journalist Darya Dugina, who died in a car bombing near Moscow in August 2022 in an attack believed to have targeted her father, political philosopher Aleksandr Dugin.

READ MORE: Ukrainian terrorist plot against high-ranking Russian official thwarted – FSB

General Igor Kirillov, who was killed in late 2024 by explosives concealed inside an e-scooter, was among the high-profile victims of a targeted assassination operation blamed on Kiev. Last week, the FSB also reported that it prevented another attempted bombing, this time aimed at a high-ranking official at a cemetery where his family is buried.