Espionage passions around possible resignation of Ukraine's intelligence chief

Perhaps there would not have been such close attention to the rotation of Kyrylo Budanov's entourage and the Ukrainian defense system as a whole if there had not been talk from time to time that the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU) guru himself was going to be fired.

Another painful callus for Yermak

The story of how the government goes around in circles in its personnel reshuffles might not be so sad if it did not concern the Ministry of Defense at a time when Ukraine is fighting such a terrible war.

Political analyst Ihor Reiterovych believes that the situation around Kyrylo Budanov causes misunderstanding in society because we do not know the official position of Budanov. “If he came out and said: “We have personnel changes, I have agreed them with the Minister of Defense, the Minister of Defense has approved the decision,”there would be no questions. Since Budanov has not yet done so, we are forced to analyze this in terms of possible internal games, backdoor stories,” the expert noted.

However, certain sources claim that the decision to dismiss the deputy heads of the DIU, Viktor Zaitsev and Ihor Ostapenko, was made without Budanov's approval.

MP Serhii Rakhmanin believes that persistent and active rumors that Budanov may be dismissed are evidence that he has not been getting along with the head of the Presidential Office, Andrii Yermak, lately.

“This is my guess. But usually, as soon as there are rumors that a person may resign, then there is confirmation that for one reason or another, this person either had a quarrel with the head of the Office or their relationship has deteriorated,” Rakhmanin said.

Earlier, former MP and blogger Boryslav Bereza also wrote that the Presidential Office was going to fire Kyrylo Budanov. “They want to transfer Budanov as a deputy to Syrskyi. On the one hand, it looks like a move to another position, but in fact, it's a move to nowhere,” he said.

Probably, it was from the Presidential Office that the chords of criticism of Kyrylo Budanov for allegedly not being fully committed to his work began to sound. They say that during the war (in 2023) he managed to enter the postgraduate studies of the Ostroh Academy in Rivne region, majoring in political science, on a part-time basis. Prior to that, in 2007, Budanov graduated from the Odesa Institute of the Land Forces.

So, the head of the country's intelligence decided to improve his skills in political science. So what if he has energy and inspiration? No need to be jealous. General Budanov's colleagues are convinced that he is destined to play a major political role as soon as peace comes. We will dispense with the pathos. It is clear that Budanov is already fulfilling a certain political task. Secret, behind-the-scenes polls in 2022 showed that Zelenskyy was planning to use the cult of Budanov to balance out the very popular commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi.

The moor did his job

Kyrylo Budanov gained widespread media fame during the war. He was perhaps the only member of Ukraine's military leadership who announced a full-scale invasion, including an attack on Kyiv, back in November 2021.

Many of the DIU chief's statements about future events at the front and inside Russia, which he most likely received from intelligence officers from allied countries, were implemented one way or another until a certain time: the de-occupation of Kherson, the liberation of Zmiinyi, the impossibility of creating a blackout in Ukraine, and so on.

And then, perhaps, the partners cut off the information so that, on the one hand, Budanov would not become a godsend for Russian spies. Let's remember the attempted assassination of his wife. On the other hand, his popularity was beginning to irritate the Presidential Office.

General Budanov continued to maintain his brand as a public predictor of the course of the war as best he could, but his predictions mostly did not come true. This year, he ceased to be the media personality he used to be. In a strange way, this coincided with the resignation of the chief of staff, Valerii Zaluzhnyi.

Architect of enchanting operations

However, Kyrylo Budanov is perceived more favorably abroad. The British magazine The Economist called him “a Ukrainian spy under the Kremlin's skin.” The journalists of the publication claim that the head of Ukrainian military intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, is a great annoyance to the Russian leadership.

The foreign audience calls the former special forces officer, 38-year-old General Budanov, the architect of operations in Russia, which made him a big irritant for the Kremlin. As you know, Ukraine was not responsible for any of the operations in Russia. But Budanov practically ignores official ambiguity.

“We are at war. The drones over the Kremlin have shown the world that Russian defense is just a Potemkin village,” he told journalists when the first drones appeared over Moscow.

Since the beginning of the full-scale war, international experts believe that Budanov's influence in Ukraine has grown, so they assume that a political career may await him here. They also note his coolness in the face of the enemy and his resilience. But he is an intelligence officer. That's how he should be.

At the same time, the country's chief intelligence officer's assistants claimed that he had been the subject of more than 10 assassination attempts. Naturally, the general has opponents both in Ukraine and abroad.

Budanov's DIU is “outlawed”

Under the leadership of Kyrylo Budanov, Ukraine's Main Directorate of Intelligence became an autonomous body and his team is jokingly called an “outlaw” group.

Even his friends describe the Chief of Military Intelligence as a difficult person. Some people find it difficult to get along with him, he categorically rejects other people's opinions if they are at odds with his own, even if they have certain points of agreement. His friends recalled that the young Budanov often argued with senior commanders if he thought they were wrong.

However, his sympathizers say that General Budanov is a master of intellectual games in the outside world, but he never extended this to his colleagues or drove them into dead ends. That is, he respects those he works with.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's decision to promote a little-known military leader in 2020 came as a surprise to many. But inside the service, Kyrylo Budanov's name was already almost legendary. The Kremlin also already knew about him as a master of the spy network.

For example, Budanov was recognized as the commander of a raid in 2016 to destroy helicopters at a base in Dzhankoi (occupied Crimea). The operation in the backyard of the Russian special services was daring. On the way out, Budanov's group clashed with Russian special forces, killing several people, including a high-ranking officer.

As the head of military intelligence, Budanov adheres to the “anything is possible” attitude. The mission to rescue Afghans and other foreign nationals from Kabul in 2021 added to his recognition. But he made his main mark at the time of Russia's full-scale invasion. In the early days when saboteurs were operating in Kyiv, many saw the general running around Rybalskyi Peninsula with an assault rifle.

He is officially credited with leading the most important operations at the Hostomel airport, in Irpin and Moshchun, on the outskirts of Kyiv, which stopped the Russian advance. He is said to have sent rescue helicopters to the besieged Mariupol and to have participated in many frontline operations himself.

According to leaked classified documents, the CIA, foreign intelligence agencies had to intervene to prevent Budanov from ordering an attack on Moscow on the anniversary of the large-scale invasion in February. The raids inside Russia have heightened allied fears of provocation from the nuclear power, and the general's statements about the impending collapse of the Russian Federation do the same.

Budanov insists that peace is impossible without Russia's strategic defeat and reformatting of power in Russia. This is sincerity and a kind of provocation by a master of intellectual and espionage games. 

At the same time, the chief intelligence officer argues that a prolonged war is not in Ukraine's favor because it will deplete all its resources, which largely depend on the support of its allies.

We cannot say for sure why the Presidential Office is allergic to such characters. But if General Kyrylo Budanov resigns, the Russians will breathe a sigh of relief.

Source

About the author: Tetiana Parkhomets, journalist, political commentator at Gazeta.ua

The editors do not always share the opinions expressed by the authors of blogs or columns.