Zelensky ousts Ukraine top intel chief amid security shake-up

KYIV - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Jan 5 ousted the country’s security service chief in the latest change to Kyiv’s top intelligence positions, almost four years into the Russian invasion.

Mr Zelensky and Mr Vasyl Maliuk, a popular military leader who won praise for overseeing ambitious operations against Russian forces, said that Mr Maliuk was stepping down as head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).

Mr Zelensky said on social media he had met Mr Maliuk and thanked him for his service, posting a photo of the two men shaking hands.

Mr Maliuk said he was “stepping down” but would remain “within the SBU system to carry out world-class asymmetric special operations that will continue to inflict maximum damage on the enemy”.

Amid reports that Mr Maliuk was on the brink of being removed, several top military figures rallied behind him with statements of support over the weekend.

Ukraine’s SBU has claimed numerous bold attacks on Russia since

Moscow invaded in 2022

.

They include the 2024 killing in Moscow

of a head of the Russian army’s chemical weapons division

and repeated attacks on the Crimean Bridge.

In June, the SBU carried out

one of the most ambitious attacks by either side in the entire war

– dubbed Operation Spiderweb – when drones smuggled into Russia launched simultaneous attacks on Russian nuclear-capable bombers and airfields deep behind the front line.

The shake-up comes weeks after a corruption scandal forced Mr Zelensky’s once most important ally,

Mr Andriy Yermak, to resign

as the president’s chief of staff.

Last week, Mr Zelensky named the popular Ukrainian military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov

to head his presidential office,

and said he intended to replace the defence minister.

Mr Zelensky on Jan 5 issued a decree appointing Mr Yevgeny Khmara, who headed an SBU division, as temporarily in charge of the security service amid a search for a permanent replacement. AFP