Reports have emerged from several Ukrainian media sources on Tuesday, indicating that the wife of Ukraine’s top military intelligence official has been subjected to a severe case of poisoning. The toxic substance identified is said to be heavy metals.
The victim is none other than the spouse of Kyrylo Budanov, the Chief of Ukraine’s military intelligence. The reports, which cite unnamed intelligence sources, have not yet disclosed the specific type of heavy metal involved in the poisoning.
Marianna Budanova, the spouse of Kyrylo Budanov, holds a significant position in Ukrainian society due to her husband’s role as the head of the Ukrainian military intelligence agency, known as GUR. The agency has been at the forefront of covert operations against Russian forces during the ongoing conflict that has spanned 21 months.
"Ukrainian officials have confirmed reports that Marianna Budanova, the wife of the chief of the country's military intelligence service, had been poisoned with "heavy metals" and is in hospital for treatment, in what appears to represent the most serious targeting of a family… pic.twitter.com/rJwHsSndWb
— Live Not by Lies (@Dana35300026) November 29, 2023
Kyrylo Budanov, has seen a significant rise in his public stature within Ukraine. He is often depicted as the strategic genius operating behind the scenes.
However, the narrative is starkly different in Russian media, where Budanov is defame. He is portrayed as a figure of contempt, largely due to his pivotal role in Ukraine’s resistance against Russian forces.
If the allegations of deliberate poisoning are substantiated, this incident involving Marianna Budanova, would mark a significant escalation in the conflict. This would be the most severe instance of a family member of a high-profile Ukrainian figure being targeted since the onset of Moscow’s invasion in February of the previous year.
Despite multiple attempts to reach out to Ukraine’s military intelligence and domestic security services for their comments on the matter, there has been no response from their end.
The reports surrounding the alleged poisoning of Marianna, have been notably silent on two key aspects. Firstly, they have not pointed any fingers or suggested potential suspects who might be behind this grave incident. Secondly, the timeline of the event remains unclear.
According to a source, Marianna Budanova, has been receiving medical treatment in a hospital. This source, cited by the media outlet Babel, revealed that Budanova is nearing the end of her treatment for the effects of the alleged poisoning.
This incident has also been reported by several other media outlets. The public broadcaster Suspilne, along with online platforms Ukrainska Pravda and RBC Ukraina, have all echoed the claim that Budanova has been poisoned.
Ukrainska Pravda, a prominent media outlet, has cited an anonymous source who provided some chilling details about the alleged poisoning incident involving Marianna Budanova. According to this source, the poison was likely introduced through her food.
The source also disclosed that several other staff members of the GUR, have fallen victim to similar poisoning incidents.
In April, reports emerged from Russian media that a court in Moscow had issued an arrest warrant for Kyrylo Budanov. The court proceedings took place in absentia.
The charges brought against Budanov were of a serious nature, specifically relating to terrorism.
The Kerch Strait Bridge, has been a point of contention since Russia built it following the occupation of the peninsula. Budanov had previously stated that the bridge would be destroyed after the liberation of Crimea.
In response to the charges, the Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) of the Ukrainian Defence Ministry, which Budanov heads, dismissed Russia’s accusations as “pure rubbish”. Despite this, the court in Moscow proceeded with the charges and plans to put Budanov on the international wanted list.
This incident has further strained the already tense relations between Russia and Ukraine, remains to be seen how this will impact the geopolitical landscape in the region.
Russian authorities have previously pointed the finger at Ukrainian secret services for the deaths of a pro-war Russian blogger and a journalist within Russia. The blogger, Vladlen Tatarsky, was a prominent figure who fervently supported Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. He was killed in a bombing attack at a cafe in the center of St. Petersburg. More than 30 people were injured in the blast, which the Kremlin labeled a “terrorist attack”.
The Russian Investigative Committee arrested a woman named Daria Trepova, 26, in connection with Tatarsky’s death. However, no evidence linking Trepova to the incident was shared. Shortly afterward, Russia’s National Anti-Terrorism Committee accused Ukraine’s security services of being behind the blast.
Kyiv, on the other hand, did not claim responsibility for the incident, hinting that it could have been a case of “domestic terrorism”. Russian state media reported that a young woman was alleged to have handed Tatarsky a bust of himself, containing explosives, shortly before the blast.
In another incident, the FSB claimed that a group of six Russians was planning the “murder” of Russian TV and radio journalist Solovyev “on the instructions of the Security Service of Ukraine”. However, Kyiv has consistently denied involvement in these incidents.
Major General Kyrylo Budanov, has made a bold and controversial statement in an interview with Yahoo News. He declared,
“We’ve been killing Russians and we will keep killing Russians anywhere on the face of this world until the complete victory of Ukraine”.
Budanov’s statement came in the context of accusations from Russia that his intelligence service, known by its Ukrainian acronym HUR, was behind a series of attacks inside Russian territory. These include the car-bomb assassination of Daria Dugina, the daughter of Russia’s far-right theorist Aleksandr Dugin, in central Moscow, and the suspected truck bombing that partially dismantled the Kerch Bridge, Russia’s only direct link from the Black Sea to occupied Crimea.
Despite the serious nature of these accusations, Budanov remained defiant, framing the actions of his agency as a form of liberation. He argued that the conflict began not because he started killing people in Moscow, but because Russia invaded Ukraine in 2014.
Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov condemned Budanov’s statements, describing them as a “monstrous statement” that confirms Ukraine’s role in terrorist attacks on Russian territory. He added that Russia will monitor the reaction of Western governments “very closely”.
ALSO READ | Russia’s Largest Drone Attack on Ukraine: A Detailed Analysis