December 22, 2025 – Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov killed by a car bomb under his Kia Sorento in southern Moscow. Head of Russian General Staff’s army operational training directorate. Russian investigators suspect Ukrainian special services. No immediate comment from Kyiv.
April 25, 2025 – Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik, 59, killed by a car bomb near Moscow. Deputy head of the Main Operations Directorate of the General Staff.
December 17, 2024 – Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, chief of Russia’s Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Protection Troops, killed outside a Moscow apartment along with his assistant. Bomb hidden in an electric scooter.
November 13, 2024 – Valery Trankovsky, Russian naval captain in Sevastopol, Crimea, killed by a bomb under his car. Accused by Kyiv of ordering missile strikes on civilian targets.
October 4, 2024 – Andrei Korotkiy, employee at Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, killed in a car bomb attack. Ukrainian intelligence labeled him a collaborator and war criminal.
December 6, 2023 – Illia Kyva, former Ukrainian lawmaker regarded as a traitor by Kyiv, shot dead near Moscow.
July 11, 2023 – Stanislav Rzhitsky, Russian submarine commander, shot dead while jogging in Krasnodar. Listed by Kyiv as an alleged war criminal.
April 2, 2023 – Vladen Tatarsky, pro-war Russian military blogger, killed by a bomb concealed in a statuette presented to him in a St Petersburg café.
August 20, 2022 – Darya Dugina, daughter of a pro-war nationalist figure, killed by a car bomb in the Moscow region.
Personal Analysis
These targeted killings underscore a new phase of modern conflict where the battlefield extends deep into the enemy’s territory, beyond conventional frontlines. They reflect Ukraine’s increasing capability for precision intelligence operations and highlight the vulnerability of even high-ranking military and political figures in Russia.
At the same time, such attacks carry risks: they can escalate tensions, provoke reprisals, and blur the lines between military and civilian targets. The pattern also signals that warfare is no longer confined to conventional combat zones, with assassination becoming a tool to disrupt command structures and morale.
Overall, the assassinations illustrate the intense, asymmetric nature of the Ukraine conflict, and show how both sides are adapting to a war that is as strategic as it is physical.
With information from Reuters.
