Zelenskyy outraged as 'shameful' shootout erupts between Kyiv spy agencies amid Ukraine war

Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticised Ukraine’s SBU and GUR following a shootout in Kyiv between the two security and intelligence services that reportedly left three officers injured. The SBU is Ukraine’s internal security service, comparable to MI5 or the FBI. The GUR, or HUR, serves as its armed forces counterpart and is responsible for military activities and special operations. Reports indicated the gunfight arose after the SBU detained a leader of an anti-Kremlin Russian unit operating under GUR oversight. Zelenskyy labelled the situation "absolutely shameful," ordered the involvement of prosecutors and investigators, and dismissed a senior SBU officer. "Here in Ukraine, shooting is only permissible at Russian occupiers in defence of Ukraine," he said. "Our state will not perceive any other shootout as something that anyone is allowed to do."

Russian drones struck central Kyiv on Wednesday, marking the seventh consecutive day of intense attacks on the capital. Explosions were reported again in the early hours of Thursday. On Wednesday, 11 people were wounded, with residential and university buildings damaged. Russia also targeted power facilities in the southern Odesa region with missiles and drones, leaving more than 350,000 homes without electricity, according to authorities. Two people were killed and eight wounded in strikes on the south-eastern city of Dnipro, the regional governor reported, with food warehouses and educational buildings among the damaged sites.

Norway has confiscated a Russian cruise ship due to unpaid compensation linked to the illegal annexation of Crimea. In April 2023, a tribunal in The Hague ordered Russia to pay Naftogaz $4.22bn for Crimean assets seized during Moscow's invasion. Naftogaz is a Ukrainian state oil and gas company. Russia has refused to comply with the ruling. According to Naftogaz, the seizure was authorised by the Nord-Troms and Senja district court on 31 August. The vessel, the Professor Molchanov, is Russian-owned and was used for commercial expedition cruises, including trips to the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard.

Ukraine has called on the UN's aviation agency, the ICAO, and its member states to prohibit their airlines from using Russian airspace, a day after Zelenskyy warned it was "becoming completely unsafe" due to Ukrainian drones. Ukraine formally requested "the full prohibition by ICAO member states of civil aircraft operations within the airspace of the Russian Federation." In response, the ICAO urged its members to ensure the safety of civilian aircraft. "Long-range weapons systems, unmanned aircraft systems, global navigation satellite system radio frequency interference, and advanced air defence systems are among the military technologies jeopardising civilian aviation."

According to Marco Rubio, it could take Ukraine several years to begin building Patriot air defence interceptors, and the process does not offer an immediate solution for Kyiv. "I mean, these are highly sophisticated weaponry," he said.