A suspect in the shooting of Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev, the first deputy head of Russia's GRU military intelligence service, has been apprehended in Dubai, as confirmed by the FSB. The man, who is in his 60s, reportedly fled to the UAE following the attack on Alexeyev, who was shot multiple times at an apartment in Moscow. The FSB specified that alongside the arrest in Dubai, another immediate accomplice was captured in Moscow, while a third individual managed to escape to Ukraine.

This incident adds to a concerning trend of violent attacks targeting high-ranking military officials within Russia. Since December 2024, there have been multiple assassination attempts and killings of senior military figures, including the recent murders of three generals in the Moscow area. The spike in violence raises significant questions about internal security and the state of military command within Russia, particularly in light of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has suggested that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was behind the attack on Alexeyev, implying a deliberate act to disrupt diplomatic discussions concerning the ongoing war. Such claims further complicate the already fraught narrative surrounding the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, potentially escalating tensions as the two nations navigate their contentious relationship.