Inna Andalitskaya20:00, 11/24/23

To suppress the Euromaidan protests, Russia sent emissaries, FSB representatives, and about 11 thousand grenades to Ukraine.

The idea to disperse the student “Maidan” belonged to the Russian Federation and was imposed on the leadership of Ukraine. Moscow sent emissaries to Ukraine to foment unrest. 

This was stated by the deputy head of the State Bureau of Investigation for Maidan Affairs, Artem Yablonsky, in an interview broadcast on the “United News” telethon.

He noted that on November 21, 2013, when the government of Mykola Azarov abandoned European integration and announced its decision, protests began, and Yanukovych’s government immediately began preparing to use the forces and means of law enforcement agencies to counter the “Maidan.” Thus, already on November 22, 2013, in Ukraine, by decision of the head of the SBU, an increased level of preparedness and a potential degree of terrorist threat were introduced.

“The investigation clearly established that the idea to disperse the students at the end of November was from the Russian Federation. And Ukraine was only used for this, imposing and creating conditions for this, delivering appropriate ultimatums to the leaders of the state and the leadership of law enforcement agencies. Ukrainian law enforcement officers were actually involved for this. However, Russia constantly controlled this through the leadership of the state and the heads of law enforcement agencies. And also sent its emissaries here to control and provide methodological assistance on how to properly disperse protests,” Yablonsky said. 

According to him, the then chairman of the Kyiv city state administration and the deputy secretary of the National Security and Defense Council came to the office of the chief of the Kyiv police and persuaded him to use police forces and means to disperse the students. 

“They persuaded to give the appropriate order through persuasion, threats, coercion,” Yablonsky noted, adding that the deputy secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, who was a major general in the reserve, a career officer of the KGB of the USSR, was specially sent from the KGB to the Ukrainian authorities, and he was prepared to counteract protests in advance, even before they begin.

He is now accused in Ukraine of exceeding the powers of a law enforcement officer with the use of violence and illegally countering protests. As Yablonsky clarified, in the “Maidan” cases, he is a defendant in one criminal proceeding, but there is also a well-known criminal proceeding on suspicion of him committing high treason already in the events of 2022-2023. 

The representative of the SBI also reported that on December 13-15, 2013, the first batch of the FSB of the Russian Federation, consisting of 20 people, arrived in Ukraine, who assisted the Security Service of Ukraine, then internal troops, in countering the protests. In addition, it was established that in January 2014, two aircraft with Russian flash-noise and gas grenades arrived in Ukraine, also to counter the “Maidanovites.” The grant was then delivered to about 11 thousand. 127 protesters were injured by those grenades. 

At the same time, Yablonsky said that with the outbreak of a full-scale war, the State Bureau of Investigation went to court and the court granted permission to transfer 8.5 thousand grenades from those batches for use against the Russian aggressor under martial law. 

“And now lend-lease from Russia is thus working against Russia itself,” he noted.

According to Yablonsky, if we talk about the events of November 30, 2013, then indictments have already been sent to the court against three officials: the deputy secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, two company commanders – a motor transport company, who later headed the special police unit, and the second – who In addition to the dispersal of the student “Maidan”, he subsequently carried out executions of citizens on February 20, 2014. In addition, indictments were sent to the court against 14 more people, 13 of whom were in the face-to-face procedure, for participation in the defeat of the student “Maidan”.

Yablonsky said that 20 people who are currently fighting against Ukraine have been identified among former Berkut employees.

The State Bureau of Investigation has almost completed the investigation into the Revolution of Dignity

As UNIAN reported, on November 21, when the Day of Dignity and Freedom is celebrated in Ukraine, the State Bureau of Investigation announced that it was at the finish line of an investigation into the facts of forceful suppression of mass protests during the Revolution of Dignity in November 2013-February 2014.

According to the State Bureau of Investigation, over the past 10 years, 82 criminal proceedings have been initiated and 40 sentences have been passed against 49 people.

(C)UNIAN 2023