Darya Dugina Killer: Ukraine's Possible Role in Car Bombing That Killed Daughter of Russian Politician, Revealed

The daughter of a famous Russian nationalist, Daria Dugina, was killed in a car bombing near Moscow in August. According to US intelligence services, the incident was part of a covert operation that US officials worry could escalate the conflict.

According to officials, neither through supplying intelligence nor any other support, the United States participated in the attack. Additionally, American officials claimed that had they been consulted before the operation, they would have objected to the killing. After that, they claimed, American officials reprimanded Ukrainian officials for the assasination.

US Believes Ukraine Behind Darya Dugina Assassination

The US government was informed last week of the closely held assessment of Ukrainian complicity, which has not previously been revealed. Immediately following the attack, Ukraine denied involvement in the death and senior officials

Although Moscow has not specifically responded to the assassination, the United States is concerned that this could lead to Moscow launching its operations against important Ukrainian officials despite the assaults' strong symbolic importance. American officials have expressed frustration with Ukraine's lack of candor over its military and clandestine plans, particularly those involving Russian territory.

Ukraine's security services have proven they can reach Russia to carry out sabotage operations since the start of the war. But assassinating Dugina would be one of the most audacious operations to date, demonstrating Ukraine's ability to approach important Russians, as per NewYork Times.

The claim was quickly refuted by Oleksii Danylov, secretary of Ukraine's National Security Council. We have nothing to do with this lady's murder; the Russian secret services are responsible, he said in August. At the time, Mykhailo Podolyak, a Zelensky aide, added that the Russian claim was indicative of the fictional universe that the Russian leadership was living in.

If the information about Ukraine's participation is genuine, it would show a daring escalation of Ukraine's clandestine operations to target a prominent political person just outside of Moscow. Attacks on military installations and fuel stores in towns near the Russia-Ukraine border, including Belgorod, have accounted for the majority of Ukrainian strikes inside Russia to date, the US nonetheless does.

US Hints Ukraine's Wider Espionage Campaign in Russia

According to a Ukrainian official, Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser for the US, and Andriy Yermak, Zelensky's chief of staff, did not discuss the conclusions reached by the US intelligence community at their earlier this week meeting in Istanbul. It's unclear if President Joe Biden brought up the subject more recently during their Tuesday phone conversation with President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The State Department has charged Project Lakhta with using online trolls to meddle in US elections through the operation of a website called United World International, which was run by Dugina and had English and Turkish versions.

Following Russia's invasion in February, the US imposed sanctions on both Dugin and Dugina, charging them with disinformation campaigns and efforts to destabilize Ukraine, CNN reported.

The US officials also suggested that there may be a larger espionage operation by the Ukrainians inside Russia. They expressed their frustration with the lack of transparency with which it is being carried out, which stands in stark contrast to the open cooperation the two countries enjoy on the military front.

They also included the US's strong opposition to highly symbolic killings of people like Dugina or her father, which have little impact on the battlefield but might provoke a ferocious response from Moscow. If Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky could have approved of the murder, the government didn't say. On August 20, Dugina perished in a car bombing that was purportedly caused by a discreetly inserted remote explosive device.

However, at least one think tank expert has expressed skepticism about Ukrainian involvement, suggesting that the Kremlin or even Dugin himself was behind the assassination. The Russian security service claims to have solved the case and placed the blame on two Ukrainians they claim were working with Ukrainian intelligence, according to Washington Examiner.