Sun Apr 27 12:49:23 UTC 2025: ## Kremlin Blames Ukraine for Assassination of Top Russian Military Officer
**Moscow, April 27, 2025** – A Ukrainian citizen has been charged with terrorism in connection with the car bombing death of Lt. Gen. Yaroslav Moskalik, a senior Russian military officer, near Moscow on Friday. The Kremlin has directly blamed Ukraine for the assassination, calling it the latest in a series of attacks targeting Russian military personnel and pro-war figures since the start of the conflict in Ukraine.
Interfax news agency, citing Russia’s Investigative Committee, reported that the suspect, Ignat Kuzin, confessed to the killing and claimed to have been recruited by Ukrainian security services. Moskalik, deputy head of the Main Operations Directorate of Russia’s General Staff, was killed in Balashikha, just outside Moscow, hours before a scheduled meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy and Vladimir Putin.
Russian investigators are reportedly pursuing other potential suspects involved in the assassination. War bloggers have described Moskalik as a rising star within the Russian military, noting his participation in high-level delegations negotiating with Western officials to resolve the Ukraine conflict and his involvement in military cooperation in Africa and the Middle East.
Ukraine has yet to comment on the incident.
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