THE Russian security service (FSB) announced today that it foiled an assassination attempt against the Moscow-appointed governor of Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, and accused Ukraine of trying to plant a bomb in his vehicle.

“An assassination attempt against the head of Crimea, Sergei Aksionov, organized by Ukrainian special forces”the FSB announced, as reported by Russian news agencies.

A Russian citizen, born in 1988, has been arrested as part of the investigation, the FSB said, explaining that “he was recruited by officials of the SBU”, the Ukrainian secret service, and that he “received training (…) in Ukraine, including in the use of explosives ».

However, “he did not have time to implement his plan, because he was arrested while taking an explosive device from a hiding place”, added the same source.

“Our special services work in a clear and efficient way. I am convinced that the instigators of this crime will be identified and punished,” Aksionov wrote on Telegram, thanking the FSB for “preventing his assassination attempt.”

Kyiv has not yet made any comments.

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, there have been several attacks against officials of the Russian occupation, which Moscow attributes to Kiev.