Ukraine's military intelligence warns of disinformation campaign amid clash with SBU
On 3 September, Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) said a targeted disinformation campaign is being rolled out to discredit military intelligence and its combat units. The warning came the day after an armed shootout in Kyiv between HUR-affiliated personnel and SBU operatives linked to the detention of Stepan Kaplunov, deputy commander of the Russian Volunteer Corps, who is accused by the SBU of ties to Russia's FSB.
Key points
- HUR announced on 3 September a 'targeted disinformation campaign' aimed at discrediting military intelligence and its combat units, without naming the organizers.
- An armed clash between HUR personnel and the SBU's Alpha unit occurred on 2 September on Shumskoho Street in the Berezniaky district of Kyiv.
- The SBU says the incident took place during investigative actions tied to alleged FSB contacts of Stepan Kaplunov, deputy commander of the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK), a HUR-subordinated unit.
- Kaplunov, his lawyer Taras Borovsky and RDK commander Denys Kapustin say he was abducted on 23 August by people posing as police and that any confession to FSB ties was coerced; the SBU released video on 3 September showing him acknowledging such ties.
- The Office of the Prosecutor General opened a pre-trial investigation; an SBU employee was notified of suspicion under Article 365 of the Criminal Code, and a HUR servicemember under Article 348.
- President Volodymyr Zelensky called the incident 'disgraceful'/'shameful' and demanded personnel decisions from the heads of the special services.
- On 3 September, Zelensky dismissed Oleh Khramov, head of the SBU's department for state secrets protection and licensing.
Why it matters
HUR's public warning signals concern about coordinated information warfare aimed at a key Ukrainian military institution. The statement was issued amid an open and armed conflict between two Ukrainian security bodies — HUR and the SBU — over the detention of an RDK commander accused of FSB ties, with competing narratives about an alleged abduction, a coerced confession and a legitimate counter-intelligence operation. President Zelensky publicly criticised the episode and demanded accountability, while the Office of the Prosecutor General opened a formal investigation and filed criminal suspicions against personnel from both agencies.
What happened
On 2 September, an armed shootout broke out on Shumskoho Street in the Berezniaky district of Kyiv between HUR-affiliated personnel and operatives of the SBU's Alpha special unit. The SBU said the confrontation occurred during investigative actions tied to alleged FSB contacts of Stepan Kaplunov, deputy commander of the Russian Volunteer Corps, a unit within HUR's structure; the Alpha unit used weapons and several attackers were wounded. Kaplunov, his lawyer Taras Borovsky and RDK commander Denys Kapustin say he was abducted on 23 August by people posing as police and that any confession to FSB ties was coerced. On 3 September, the SBU released video in which Kaplunov appears to acknowledge FSB contacts. Also on 3 September, HUR published a statement on its Telegram channel announcing that a targeted disinformation campaign is being rolled out to discredit military intelligence and its combat units, saying organizers plan to involve media, bloggers and Telegram channels with dubious reputations, including for financial reward. HUR called on the public to trust only verified official sources and on journalists and bloggers to contact law enforcement if approached with offers to publish unverified material. The Office of the Prosecutor General opened a pre-trial investigation; an SBU employee was notified of suspicion under Part 2 of Article 365 of the Criminal Code (exceeding authority), and a HUR servicemember under Article 348 (encroachment on the life of a law-enforcement officer). On 3 September, President Volodymyr Zelensky called the incident 'disgraceful' and dismissed Oleh Khramov, head of the SBU's department for state secrets protection and licensing.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian sources prominently carry HUR's own statement framing the events as a coordinated external disinformation attack on military intelligence and its combat units. Several outlets give space to Kaplunov's version of events, his lawyer's claims of coercion, and RDK commander Denys Kapustin's corroboration of an alleged 23 August abduction. One outlet carries Kaplunov's direct accusation that the SBU itself is behind the discrediting effort, foregrounding an internal rivalry narrative between the agencies. Ukrainian reporting also places HUR's warning alongside Zelensky's 'shameful' criticism and the dismissal of an SBU official, embedding the story in a domestic accountability frame.
Where reporting differs
Sources disagree on Kaplunov's status and the circumstances of his detention: the SBU says he was detained during investigative actions and confessed to FSB ties, while Kaplunov, his lawyer and RDK commander Denys Kapustin say he was abducted on 23 August, that no official suspicion was filed, and that any confession was made under duress. The 2 September Kyiv incident is also characterised differently: HUR frames it as part of an external disinformation and discrediting campaign against military intelligence, while the SBU frames it as a legitimate counter-FSB operation involving the use of force by its Alpha unit during investigative actions. A separate framing appears only in Ukrinform, which attributes Russian disinformation campaigns to Moscow's effort to portray itself as treating Ukrainian POWs better than Ukraine treats Russian POWs; this characterisation is not corroborated by other supplied sources.
Background
The conflict escalated on 2 September with the armed shootout in Kyiv's Berezniaky district between HUR-affiliated personnel and SBU Alpha unit operatives. The SBU linked the shooting to alleged FSB ties of Stepan Kaplunov, deputy commander of the Russian Volunteer Corps. Kaplunov and Kapustin say he was abducted on 23 August by people posing as police; his lawyer said his whereabouts after release were unknown. The SBU released video on 3 September showing Kaplunov appearing to acknowledge FSB contacts, which he denies, saying the confession was coerced. On the same day, Zelensky dismissed Oleh Khramov, head of the SBU department for state secrets protection and licensing.