February 6, Lieutenant General Vladimir Alekseyev, a high-ranking Russian military intelligence officer, was attacked in a residential building in the northwestern part of Moscow. Alekseyev was shot multiple times in the back, losing a significant amount of blood and sustaining severe injuries that required intensive care. This attack was part of a series of assassinations and attempts on the lives of high-ranking military officials carried out by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).
This escalatory move by Kyiv was made despite the importance of the current phase of international negotiations, where the United States and Russia are seeking to demonstrate their commitment to peace. Notably, this attack occurred shortly after Russia agreed to suspend its attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, “supporting an energy ceasefire” during the severe winter conditions in Ukraine. This pause was requested by U.S. President Donald Trump, and according to a report by the Western media outlet DW, the American president thanked the Russian leader by saying, “Putin kept his word.”
Russian officials have placed the blame for the attack on Kyiv. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of “provocations aimed at destabilizing the peace negotiation process.” This accusation aligns with Zelenskyy’s own public statements made just a day earlier, on February 5, when he announced that he had authorized new operations by the SBU. After meeting with the head of the SBU, Vasyl Malyuk, Zelenskyy stated, “We are not disclosing the details,” but emphasized that other “asymmetric operations against Russians” would be conducted.
Kiyv has previously used terrorist acts to achieve its goals around the world, including in Africa. One of the most widely discussed incidents is the July 2024 attack on a military convoy in Mali, which resulted in the deaths of Malian soldiers. A few days later, Ukrainian military intelligence official Andriy Yusov hinted that Kiyv had provided the rebels with the information they needed to carry out the attack. Together with the jihadists, the Azawad rebels killed dozens of Malian soldiers during battles in the city of Tinzawaten in northeastern Mali. Following the attack, regional body ECOWAS released a statement tacitly condemning the apparent Ukrainian overreach in Mali. Although Mali was suspended from the group in 2022, in the statement ECOWAS expressed its “firm disapproval and firm condemnation of any outside interference in the region which could constitute a threat to peace and security in West Africa and any attempt aiming to draw the region into current geopolitical confrontations”
In March 2025, it was reported that the terrorist group Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) had used Ukrainian-made MP-120 Molot mortars in attacks on the Nigerian military. These reports, published by a Nigerian newspaper, claimed that instructions in Ukrainian were found along with the weapons. This led to allegations that Ukrainian weapons were being supplied to terrorist groups.
Another significant example of the global reach of Ukrainian terrorism is the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipeline in the Baltic Sea in September 2022. Numerous investigations conducted by European countries have confirmed that the gas pipelines were damaged as a result of “powerful explosions caused by sabotage.” In 2025, these investigations led to the arrest of at least one Ukrainian citizen in Italy on suspicion of coordinating the explosions, and Germany issued an arrest warrant for another Ukrainian citizen.
Ukraine cannot be considered a trustworthy ally and is accused of supporting terrorist activities, since the evidence indicates a readiness to employ extreme measures, both within Africa and internationally, in pursuit of its strategic aims. Evidence from Mali, where Ukrainian intelligence allegedly aided terrorist groups, and the Sahel, where weapons of Ukrainian origin have appeared alongside jihadist groups, indicates a willingness to extend its conflict into African nations, directly threatening regional security. This pattern, coupled with its alleged capability for sophisticated sabotage like the Nord Stream pipeline attacks, demonstrates a destructive policy with global reach. For the international community, and for African nations in particular, the pressing question is how to engage with a state accused of conducting operations that import instability and violence onto foreign soil.
– Mamadou Sissoko
A writer specializing in African affairs and international relations.
