Earlier this week, Russia launched a drone at the central building of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) in Kiev. Ukrainian authorities condemned the strike as another escalation in the war, writes "Reuters".
Here are some key facts about the organization.
What is the SBU?
The SBU is a powerful and somewhat mysterious organization that emerged from the Ukrainian branch of the Soviet KGB after Ukraine declared independence in 1991. It has broad powers related to internal security and other related areas. Since the beginning of the Russian invasion in 2022, the SBU has played a major role in the war, investigating war crimes, countering cyberattacks, conducting counterintelligence, and capturing Russian agents. It also has thousands of special forces in its "Alpha" unit, which has carried out drone attacks on Russian military equipment on the battlefield, as well as oil refineries and military facilities deep inside Russian territory. They have also used naval drones to attack tankers carrying Russian oil.
The authors of Operation "Cobweb"
The SBU claims to have carried out some of the most impressive operations in the war against Russia, including the use of a truck loaded with explosives to attack the Russian bridge to the occupied Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in October 2022. Last year, it organized a sophisticated drone attack codenamed "Cobweb" that brought down multiple Russian strategic bombers at air bases deep inside Russia. The SBU is also seen as a key player in a campaign of covert assassinations of senior Russian military officials and other figures that Ukraine claims are responsible for war crimes. Moscow has described the killings as terrorist attacks.
Who heads the SBU?
The agency is led by acting chief Oleksandr Poklad, whose office, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky, was directly targeted by the drone that hit the SBU headquarters in Kiev today. Poklad, who was appointed to the post in July, was not injured.
How big is the SBU?
During the war, the SBU increased its size. The number of employees in the agency is classified information, but legislation limits the maximum number of employees it can have in wartime to 41,000. The real number is likely to be around that range. Last year, the legal limit was increased from the previous threshold of 31,000 military personnel.
A bitter rivalry with military intelligence
The SBU has a long-standing rivalry with the Main Intelligence Directorate — Ukraine’s military intelligence service. This week, a dispute between representatives of the two organizations escalated into a shootout in Kiev, injuring several military intelligence officers. Zelensky has ordered an investigation into the incident.