Ukraine's intelligence feud threatens national security, warns ex-officer

Former Ukrainian intelligence officer Roman Chervinsky called the conflict between Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) and the Security Service (SBU) threatening to national security. He stated this in an interview with Radio NV. Chervinsky, who served 27 years in the SBU and two years in HUR, said the situation began deteriorating in 2019-2020 when appointments were made based on loyalty to the president's circle rather than merit. He claimed acting SBU head Oleksandr Poklad was appointed through Andriy Yermak's efforts, making HUR a competitor to the SBU. The comments follow a September 2 shooting in Kyiv during an SBU search of Russian Volunteer Corps deputy commander Stepan Kaplunov's apartment. The SBU accused Kaplunov of plotting an assassination for Russia's FSB, which he denies. President Zelensky called the incident shameful and announced dismissals of deputy heads from both agencies.