The Ukrainian government blocked a Russian conspiracy to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the embattled country's government announced on Tuesday.
Two Ukrainian colonels in the country's state guard - which provides security for top government officials - were allegedly recruited by Russia's Federal Security Service prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Vasyl Maliuk, head of the Ukrainian State Security Service, alleged that the plot was scheduled to coincide with Russian President Vladimir Putin's Tuesday inauguration, the Associated Press reported.
Ukrainian officials believe that three Russian spies were the masterminds behind plans to recruit members of Zelenskyy's security detail to first hold the president hostage and then to kill him. The Ukrainian government further alleged that the individuals involved in the plot were seeking to target other Ukrainian officials with rockets, drones and missiles, according to the Associated Press.
The Ukrainian colonels involved in the plot were arrested on suspicion of treason. If convicted they could face life in prison.
