Security Service of Ukraine
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) is Ukraine's domestic intelligence and law-enforcement agency, responsible for state security, counter-intelligence, counter-terrorism and anti-corruption work.
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Ukraine strikes Russian Su-24 bomber at Saky airfield in occupied Crimea
Ukraine's Defence Forces struck a Russian Su-24 bomber at the Saky airfield in temporarily occupied Crimea during the night of 16 September, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In the same operational period, Ukrainian forces reported strikes on Russian drone storage and launch sites, drone control points, ammunition and fuel depots, and reconnaissance posts across occupied Donetsk, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts. The extent of damage to the Su-24 is being clarified.
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NABU exposes group suspected of stealing 100,000 tonnes of Ukrnafta fuel worth over 2.88 billion hryvnias
Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies NABU and SAPO announced they had exposed an organized group suspected of misappropriating 100,000 tonnes of oil products belonging to Ukrnafta, Ukraine's largest oil producer. The estimated value exceeds 2.88 billion hryvnias. Four suspects have been formally notified in the first episode of the case, with several others identified. The investigation covers a 2017–2020 scheme in which fuel was routed through affiliated companies and proceeds were diverted via offshore entities.
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Ukraine’s Prosecutor General announces suspicion against NABU director, then leaves the country; Zelensky moves to dismiss him
Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, who had resigned a week earlier amid the NABU/SAPO “Carthage” operation against his own office, announced on 14 September that he had signed a notice of suspicion against NABU director Semen Kryvonos. The same night he left Ukraine. President Zelensky publicly called for his immediate dismissal, submitted the motion to the Verkhovna Rada, and signed a decree suspending him under martial-law provisions. The European Commission said it was aware of the events and stressed that independent anti-corruption bodies are a cornerstone of the rule of law in Ukraine.
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Zelensky signs sanctions against former press secretary Mendel and Russian propagandists
President Volodymyr Zelensky on 13 September 2026 enacted personal sanctions imposed by the National Security and Defense Council against his former press secretary Yulia Mendel, the only Ukrainian citizen among 10 individuals in the package. On the same day he signed two further decrees targeting 29 Russian citizens and 29 companies linked to the state corporation Rostec, and 20 vessels of the Russian shadow fleet. The move follows a May 2026 interview in which Mendel repeated Russian-aligned claims to U.S. podcaster Tucker Carlson.
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Ukraine's PM outlines $56.5 billion in year-end financial needs, split between macrofinancing and defense
Ukrainian Prime Minister Serhiy Koretsky told the Yalta European Strategy forum that Ukraine faces two urgent financial challenges by year-end: $29.5 billion in confirmed macrofinancing at risk of not being received, and an additional $27 billion needed for defense forces. The government pledged to finish its part of the work by mid-October, including submitting required draft laws in September and finalizing all Cabinet resolutions by October 15, while calling on parliament to pass 27 outstanding bills.
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Ukrainian drones strike Russian naval base and fuel-oil terminal in Novorossiysk
In the night of September 8–9, 2026, Ukrainian drones attacked the Russian naval base and the Novorossiysk Mazut Terminal in Krasnodar Krai. The General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces confirmed the strike on the base and reported fires on its territory and at the seaport's fuel-oil terminal, as well as explosions in ship basing areas. Mayor of Novorossiysk Andriy Kravchenko confirmed drone debris fell on enterprise territories and near a residential building; the governor of Krasnodar Krai later reported 4 killed and 29 injured.
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Ukraine's Prosecutor General Kravchenko resigns amid NABU 'Carthage' corruption probe
Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko submitted his resignation on the evening of 7 September after NABU and SAPO exposed a criminal organization within the Office of the Prosecutor General accused of protecting fraudulent call centers. First Deputy Prosecutor General Maria Vdovychenko also resigned. The president has not yet formally submitted the dismissal to the Verkhovna Rada.
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Ukraine's Prosecutor General Kravchenko resigns after NABU searches expose alleged call-centre protection scheme
Ukrainian Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko submitted his resignation on the evening of 7 September after anti-corruption investigators searched the Office of the Prosecutor General and exposed an alleged scheme to protect fraudulent call centres. The 'Carthage' operation by NABU and SAPO has led to the detention of several suspects, including Serhiy Kropyva, a deputy head of an OGP department, with bail set at 120 million hryvnia. President Zelensky said the resignation would be sent to the Verkhovna Rada.
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Ukraine military intelligence chief calls Kyiv SBU–HUR shooting "unacceptable," denies "war between special services"
Head of Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) Oleh Ivashchenko publicly commented on the September 2 shooting between SBU and HUR personnel in Kyiv, calling it an "unacceptable incident" and rejecting suggestions of a "war between special services." The shooting occurred in the Berezniaky district during investigative actions linked to Russian Volunteer Corps deputy commander Stepan Kaplunov. The SBU and HUR have given competing accounts of the incident, and the State Bureau of Investigation and the Office of the Prosecutor General have opened pretrial investigations.
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Ukraine kills Oleh Shutov in Donetsk, suspect in 2017 assassinations of Ukrainian officers
Ukrainian special services eliminated Oleh Shutov in occupied Donetsk on 27 July by detonating an improvised explosive device in his Subaru at the Dynamo sports complex, according to Ukrainian reports. Shutov, an operative of the so-called 'MGB DPR' and president of the 'DPR' judo and sambo association, was publicly named by former SBU chief Vasyl Hrytsak in 2019 as the direct perpetrator of the 2017 car-bomb assassination of Ukrainian military intelligence Major General Maksym Shapoval, and was also linked to the 2017 killing of SBU Colonel Oleksandr Kharaberush in Mariupol.
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SBU detains artillery brigadier in Mykolaiv accused of guiding Russian strikes for FSB
Ukraine's SBU detained a servicemember of an artillery brigade in Mykolaiv Oblast on suspicion of working for Russia's FSB. Investigators say the man was recruited via Telegram while AWOL, returned to his unit to spy, and directed strikes on Ukrainian Defense Forces positions in Mykolaiv and Odesa oblasts. He faces life imprisonment on state treason charges.
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Russian drone strike hits 9-story residential building in Boryspil, two women hospitalized
In the night of September 5, a Russian drone strike damaged a 9-story residential building in Boryspil, Kyiv Oblast, setting fire to the roof and an apartment. Two women were hospitalized with acoustic barotrauma and closed chest trauma. The Kyiv Oblast Military Administration initially reported no casualties before the head of the administration, Timur Tkachenko, confirmed the injuries.
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Russian strike hits SBU headquarters in central Kyiv; Radio NV poll finds plurality expecting retaliatory hit on FSB in Moscow
On September 4, Russian forces struck the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) headquarters in central Kyiv. A Radio NV poll of 918 people asked respondents whether they expected a retaliatory strike on the FSB building in Moscow. Nearly half of respondents said they very much expected such a strike, while smaller shares said it would be futile or only symbolic. Ukraine's Foreign Ministry called the attack a serious escalation, and the SBU said its response would be painful for the enemy.
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Russian drone strikes SBU headquarters in central Kyiv, hits building opposite Saint Sophia Cathedral
On September 4, a Russian drone struck the central building of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) on Volodymyrska Street in central Kyiv, opposite Saint Sophia Cathedral. A fire broke out and part of the floor structure and outer wall were destroyed. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the drone was directed at the office of acting SBU head Oleksandr Poklad, who was not in the building at the time, and ordered preparation of an adequate, tangible, and where possible mirror response.
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NABU and SAP launch 'Carthage' operation targeting prosecutor's office official over alleged call-center scheme
On September 4, Ukraine's NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAP) announced a special operation codenamed "Carthage" aimed at exposing a criminal organization allegedly led by an official of the Office of the Prosecutor General. The group is suspected of providing cover for a network of fraudulent call centers and laundering assets. According to Ukrainska Pravda sources, Serhiy Kropyva, head of the OPG's cyber department, was detained. The OPG said it is cooperating with investigators and has suspended the suspect.
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Ukrainian lawmaker registers bill on state protection for wartime Stavka and RNBO members
A bill has been registered in the Verkhovna Rada providing state protection for members of the Commander-in-Chief's Staff and the National Security and Defense Council who exercised their powers during wartime. The initiative, authored by Roman Kostenko, also proposes lifetime protection for the wartime president and would expand the State Protection Directorate's authorized headcount.
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Trump's envoys Witkoff and Kushner to visit Moscow and Kyiv this weekend carrying war-ending proposal
President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed on the evening of September 4 that US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will travel to Moscow on Saturday September 5 and then to Kyiv on Sunday September 6, carrying a proposal to end the war. Zelensky said Ukraine would ensure the normal functioning of Russian airspace and refrain from strikes during the visit, and called on Russia to reciprocate with silence. President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House the same day that the envoys are bringing a peace proposal and described the mission as having a good chance of success.
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SBU detains Kharkiv couple suspected of spying for Russian military intelligence
Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) detained a married couple in Kharkiv on suspicion of transmitting information about Ukrainian forces, defensive positions, and energy infrastructure to Russian military intelligence (GRU). The husband, a mobilized soldier in a Territorial Defense brigade, allegedly tracked air defense, electronic warfare and fortifications in Kharkiv and marked power facilities on Google Maps, while his civilian wife reportedly gathered information on Ukrainian troop locations and eventually reported directly to a Russian handler. Both face state-treason charges under martial law and are in custody without bail.
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HUR warns of disinformation campaign targeting military intelligence amid SBU clash
Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) said on 3 September that a targeted disinformation campaign is being deployed to discredit military intelligence and its combat units, urging the public to trust only verified official sources and asking journalists to report any paid offers of dubious material. The warning came against the backdrop of an armed confrontation between HUR and the SBU in Kyiv on 2 September tied to the detention of Russian Volunteer Corps deputy commander Stepan Kaplunov, and was followed by President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissing an SBU department head and calling the SBU–HUR clash "shameful."
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Assassination attempt on Russian general in Engels days after Ukraine notified him of suspicion over Okhmatdyt strike
An unknown assailant on a motorcycle shot and critically wounded a Russian Aerospace Forces officer on the morning of 3 September in the settlement of Probuzhdeniye near Engels, Saratov Oblast. Russian media identified the victim as Major General Mykola Varpakhovych, commander of the 22nd Guards Heavy Bomber Aviation Division. The attack came three days after Ukraine's SBU and the Office of the Prosecutor General notified Varpakhovych in absentia of suspicion in connection with the July 2024 missile strike on the Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv.