The Ukrainian banker Denys Kiryeyev (also spelled Kireyev or Kireev) was brutally shot in the head in Kyiv a few days after the invasion of Ukraine.
Everything indicates that it was Ukrainian intelligence operatives who were behind the liquidation. Rumors had it that the 45-year-old was a traitor who served as a spy for Moscow.
But Ukraine’s military intelligence chief, General Kyrylo Budanov, claims in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that Kiryeyev had served as a secret agent in the Ukrainian intelligence service SBU since spring 2021.
Most likely, it was SBU agents who killed Kiryeyev on the streets of Kyiv last March.
– It was a very chaotic time during the first days of the war. There were sabotage groups operating in Kyiv, and you hardly knew whether you were fighting your own or pro-Russian groups. There was complete confusion about where the threat was and who the threat was, says head teacher in intelligence at the Norwegian Defense Academy, Tom Røseth, to Nettavisen.
– There was great uncertainty related to whether people were traitors or not, and whether people were supporters of Kyiv or Moscow. That was the backdrop, says Røseth.
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Mykhajlo Podoljak, who is an advisor to President Volodymyr Zelenskyj, has recently stated to the Baltic TV channel Delphi that Kiryeyev was killed because there was no overall coordination between the various Ukrainian service organizations during the first days of the war, writes Medusa.
Podoljak further says that Kiryeyev was not a Russian spy, but that Moscow tried to portray him as a Russian spy to Ukrainian delegation members during the negotiations that took place in Belarus just before the liquidation took place.
– There are two theories
Although Kiryeyev was shot and killed as a “traitor”, according to some accounts, he was buried as a hero in the Baikove cemetery next to Ukraine’s very first defense minister. He was also awarded a medal posthumously.
It is said to have been President Zelenskyj himself who signed the order to award Kiryeyev a medal posthumously for “exceptional efforts in defending the sovereignty and security of the state”.
– What actually happened seems to be fairly well documented in this Wall Street Journal case – that he was killed by SBU people who either knowingly and willingly or ignorantly took the life of their own agent or source. It seems that the testimony of General Kyrylo Budanov, who is the head of Ukraine’s military intelligence service (GUR), gives great credibility to that version of the story – namely that Kiryeyev worked for the SBU, says Røseth.
– There are two theories. Either he was killed by people who thought he was a traitor and did not know about the operation he carried out for the SBU, or it was pro-Russian actors in the SBU who then killed him and were subsequently punished for it, he says.
– Here it seems that it was an unfaithful servant who has committed a liquidation of this agent, or that there was a misunderstanding. When you have an occupying power inside a capital, there are battles and misunderstandings often arise, says Røseth.
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– Critical intelligence information
General Budanov claims that Kiryeyev handed over critical intelligence information to Ukrainian intelligence the day before the February 24 invasion. The information, which Kiryeyev is said to have obtained from Russian contacts, concerned Russia’s plans to focus the attack on the capital’s Antonov airport and then move into Kyiv.
Budanov claims that Kyiv would have fallen if Ukraine had not gained access to this critical intelligence, which led to the country’s forces being prepared for this planned Russian coup d’état.
– How important was this intelligence information that Kiryeyev is said to have given about the upcoming attack on the Antonov airfield, Røseth?
– The Ukrainians attribute an important role to him. It is possible that he came up with important information shortly before the invasion, which caused Ukraine to turn around and improve on the attack, says Røseth.
– But other indications suggest that the Americans and the British gave Ukraine important intelligence, also about the attack on the Antonov airport outside Kyiv. But if the Ukrainians had their own intelligence that allowed them to rely on this information to an even greater extent, that was of course important, he says.
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Russian air forces attacked Kyiv already on the first day of the invasion, and special forces had captured the Antonov airfield outside Kyiv.
Russia’s apparent plan was to overthrow the Ukrainian government and replace it with a puppet government loyal to the Kremlin.
– It didn’t go well with the air landing, but it was thanks to the fact that Ukraine was well prepared with good forces around Kyiv. If Russia had succeeded in that, they would have been hours away from being able to take several of the government officials in Kyiv, and then it would have been a completely different situation, defense chief Eirik Kristoffersen previously told Nettavisen.
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Suspicion of Russian influence
The Wall Street Journal, which has done a thorough deep dive into the history of Kiryeyev, writes that the murdered Ukrainian previously worked for Western financial institutions such as Crédit Lyonnais, Citibank and ING.
Kiryeyev is said to have, among other things, managed the wealth of two rich brothers from Donetsk – Serhiy and Andriy Klyuyev. The two businessmen maintained close ties with pro-Russian Ukrainian politicians, including the country’s former president Viktor Yanukovych, who fled to Russia in exile.
The work was profitable and financed Kiryeyev’s property, a “fleet of cars” and holidays in both Greece and Paris, the newspaper writes.
The link to the Klyuyev brothers is said to have sparked concern among both officialdom and colleagues, who became uneasy about possible Russian influence.
The US imposed sanctions on the one Klyuyev brother in 2015 – i.e. after the annexation of Crimea in 2014 – with accusations of undermining Ukrainian democracy.
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At about the same time, Kiryeyev allegedly provided information to the Russian federal police FSB about Ukrainian oligarchs and arms procurement in the Ukrainian defense, writes The Kyiv Post.
In 2020, an investigation was also launched against Kiryeyev on suspicion of working for Russian intelligence, writes the same newspaper. However, the results of the investigation are not available to the public.
The Kyiv Post also refers to other media, which claim that Kiryeyev was listed in documents with the FSB and Russian military intelligence under the pseudonym “god”.
Recruited Kiryeyev
General Budanov suggests at length that Kiryeyev nurtured relations with both Western intelligence services and the Russian military and Russian public officials.
General Budanov tells in The Wall Street Journal interview that he recruited Kiryeyev to use his financial and security contacts to infiltrate Russian military intelligence, which involved regular travel to Russia.
– He had the necessary connections, says Budanov to the newspaper.
– He received information about everything possible, he says.
– Do you think Kiryeyev was a double agent, Røseth?
– At least he has ingratiated himself with Russia, but his loyalty seemed to lean towards Kyiv at the crucial moment. I don’t know what he has possibly given to the Russian side that enables him to be called a double agent, he says.
Negotiations in Belarus
Shortly after the outbreak of war, Russia and Ukraine agreed to hold negotiation talks in Gomel in Belarus on 28 February.
General Budanov reportedly wanted to include Kiryeyev in the negotiating delegation, as Kiryeyev supposedly knew two of the delegates in the Russian delegation.
Kiryeyev himself is said to have stated that it was dangerous for him to appear in public in this way, but still chose to participate in the Ukrainian negotiating delegation.
– How important were these negotiations in Belarus in the days after the invasion, Røseth?
– It was important because there was still a diplomatic track. There were real talks about prisoner exchanges, other information and a possible ceasefire. And it was probably important to showcase Kiryeyev during these negotiations, says Røseth.
– There are several examples of Russians or Ukrainians having a bridge-building function in negotiating delegations. I have seen that Roman Abramovich has had a similar role, says Røseth and refers to the former Chelsea owner’s participation in negotiations in Istanbul in March last year.
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Brutally shot in the open street
A few days after the negotiations in Belarus, at the very beginning of March, Kiryeyev was allegedly called by the intelligence service SBU with a message that SBU counterintelligence chief Oleksandr Poklad wanted to meet him in Kyiv.
Kiryeyev is said to have traveled to meet the head of counterintelligence at a train station in the capital. That same evening, he was brutally killed by a headshot on an open street in Kyiv. By all accounts, it was SBU agents who were behind the liquidation.
In July last year, SBU’s chief executive was dismissed by President Zelenskyj. Zelenskyj is also said to have transferred or prosecuted dozens of high-ranking SBU officials for their alleged role in facilitating the Russian invasion.
It has been created more than 650 criminal cases which dealt with treason and treason among official officials.
