Russia Still Wants Zelensky Assassinated: Physically And Politically, Says Ukraine Security Secretary

Russia still wants to assassinate Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky after several failed attempts amid the war, Ukraine's security secretary said Thursday.

Speaking in an interview with state news agency Ukrinform, Oleksii Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, said Zelensky's assassination is still on the Kremlin's agenda, and added that Russians would likely try to "politically" assassinate the Ukrainian president after failing to "physically" liquidate him.

"The Russian Federation did not remove the task of removing Volodymyr Zelensky from the agenda. They did not succeed in physically liquidating the head of the Ukrainian state, so now they will try to engage in his 'political liquidation,'" Danilov said.

"Russia seeks political liquidation of our President because he has shown and proved to the whole world that he is the leader of our nation, the leader of our country. Volodymyr Zelensky demonstrates incomparable humanity, decency, and many other virtues, and the president of the Russian Federation is the world's No.1 terrorist in a bunker. Imagine how annoying that would be for them," he continued.

Russia has reportedly made several attempts on Zelensky's life, three of which happened in a single week in March of last year. The assassination plots were foiled after anti-war Russians gave Ukraine intel about two separate mercenary groups that managed to enter Kyiv with the aim of killing Zelensky and his family. One of the groups was identified as a unit of the Kadyrovites, an elite Chechen special force.

"We are well aware of the special operation that was to take place directly by the Kadyrovites to eliminate our president. And I can say that we have received information from the FSB, who today do not want to take part in this bloody war," Danilov said at the time, as translated by The Washington Post. "And thanks to this, the Kadyrov elite group was destroyed, which came here to eliminate our president."

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov confirmed several of his men were injured and that two had been killed. He did not confirm or deny Ukraine's claim that Kadyrovites were involved in an assassination plot targeting Zelensky.