Stavropol explosion kills Russian official who led attacks on Ukraine's Mariupol
Stavropol Krai Governor Vladimir Vladimirov confirmed Gurtsyev's death, describing it as a "nighttime incident on Chekhov Street" without providing further details.
The Investigative Committee of Russia reported that the bodies of two men with multiple injuries were found at the scene.
Multiple Russian Telegram channels identified Gurtsyev as one of the victims and shared what they claimed was footage of the explosion.
Shot Telegram channel, which appears to be close to Russian security forces, suggested the explosion may have been caused by a grenade or an improvised explosive device.
Gurtsyev took part in Russian President Vladimir Putin's "Time of Heroes" ("Vremya Geroev") program. According to the program's website, he led Russia's aerial operation to capture the Ukrainian city of Mariupol in 2022.
Vladimirov suggested possible Ukrainian involvement in the incident but provided no evidence to support the claim. The investigation is ongoing.
The Kyiv Independent could not independently verify the claims. Ukraine has not commented on the incident.
Previously, Kyiv has targeted Russian officials who had played a key role in Russia's full-scale invasion.
Read also: Ukraine war latest: Moscow proposes next round of Russia-Ukraine talks on June 2 in Istanbul
We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Axios
an hour ago
- Axios
Scoop: Putin urges Iran to take "zero enrichment" nuclear deal with U.S., sources say
Russian President Vladimir Putin has told both President Trump and Iranian officials that he supports the idea of a nuclear deal in which Iran is unable to enrich uranium, sources familiar with those discussions tell Axios. Why it matters: Russia has been Iran's main diplomatic backer on the nuclear issue for years. But while Moscow publicly advocates for Iran's right to enrich, Putin has taken a tougher position in private in the wake of the 12-day war between Israel and Iran. Behind the scenes: Moscow has encouraged the Iranians to agree to "zero enrichment," according to three European officials and one Israeli official with knowledge of the issue. Two sources said the Russians also briefed the Israeli government about Putin's position regarding Iran's uranium enrichment. "We know that this is what Putin told the Iranians," a senior Israeli official said. Putin also expressed that position in calls last week with Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron. State of play: Israeli and U.S. strikes seriously damaged Iran's nuclear facilities but did not destroy all of Iran's highly enriched uranium. It's unclear whether any of Iran's centrifuges survived. Trump has made clear he wants a new nuclear deal with Iran. If negotiations take place in the coming weeks, zero uranium enrichment on Iranian soil will be one of the key U.S. demands, sources say. Iran has long insisted that it must retain the ability to enrich under any deal. The intrigue: Putin and other Russian officials have conveyed their support for a "zero enrichment" deal to the Iranians several times of the last few weeks, the sources say. "Putin would support zero enrichment. He encouraged the Iranians to work towards that in order to make negotiations with the Americans more favorable. The Iranians said they won't consider it," one European official with direct knowledge of the issue said. Friction point: Putin's position is particularly notable given the extensive support Iran has provided Russia during its war with Ukraine, including by supplying hundreds of attack drones and surface-to-surface missiles. During and after the 12-day war, the Iranians were disappointed that the Russians didn't give them any significant support beyond press statements. The Kremlin and the White House didn't reply to requests for comment. The Iranian mission to the UN declined to comment. Zoom in: The Russians have made clear in public and private that if a deal is reached, they are willing to remove Iran's highly enriched uranium. Russia has said it would then supply Iran with 3.67% uranium for nuclear power and small quantities of 20% enriched uranium for the Tehran research reactor and the production of nuclear isotopes, sources say. What to watch: White House envoy Steve Witkoff has been talking to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi about resuming nuclear negotiations.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Leonardo may offer drone tech but has no plans for plant in Ukraine, CEO tells paper
MILAN (Reuters) -Italy's Leonardo is open to supplying technology for drones but it does not plan to open a factory in Ukraine, the chief executive of the state-controlled defence group told daily Corriere della Sera in an interview published on Saturday. Rome hosted a conference on Thursday to mobilise international support for Ukraine, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said the participants pledged more than 10 billion euros ($12 billion) to help the war-torn country. Leonardo has clinched an agreement with Turkish defence company Baykar and will soon begin production of drones in Italy, the Italian group's CEO Roberto Cingolani told Corriere, adding that Baykar was cooperating with Ukraine. "We, in cooperation with other players, can make a technological contribution. We will see what the real demands are," Cingolani told the paper. Leonardo could help with equipment that makes drones more effective, the CEO said without elaborating. "Having said that, we do not plan to open a factory in Ukraine," he added. Baykar was not immediately available to comment. ($1 = 0.8555 euros) Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
New York Times
2 hours ago
- New York Times
Who Is Winning the World War?
When future historians study the arc of American foreign policy, they will probably fold all the major events since 2020 — our pell-mell withdrawal from Afghanistan, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and Israel's conflicts in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran — into a unified narrative of global conflict. If we're fortunate, that will yield academic treatises with titles like 'The Empire Tested: America and the World, 2021-2030.' If we're unlucky — meaning, basically, if the United States and China eventually fall into a ruinous war — then the struggles in Ukraine and the Middle East will be retroactively assigned to histories of World War III. We are not, as yet, inside that kind of conflagration. But it's useful for Americans to think about our situation in global terms, with Russia and Iran and China as a revisionist alliance putting our imperial power to the test. And it's also important to recognize that this kind of conflict is an endurance test, a long and winding road, in which it's easy to fall prey to mood swings and judge the outcome prematurely. We've had a lot of these swings in the last few years. In 2001 and early 2002, the rout in Afghanistan and our overpromising to a vulnerable Ukraine made America look ineffectual … right up until Vladimir Putin actually invaded his neighbor, at which point his military setbacks and our success in rallying support for the Ukrainians yielded a lot of chest-thumping about the superiority of liberal democracy and the permanence of American hegemony. That optimistic mood lasted through the failure of Ukraine's last major counteroffensive and the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, against Israel, at which point there was a swing back toward pessimism. American power was stretched too thin; our Israeli allies were taken unawares by their enemies, the Russians were regaining ground, our arsenal was almost certainly inadequate to protect Ukraine and Israel and defend Taiwan, and all of this under a president debilitated by advancing age, a grim symbol of a crumbling imperium. This sense of multi-theater crisis helped to restore Donald Trump to power. Then the initial months of his administration inspired fears that he would end the global conflict by effectively surrendering — abandoning allies and making deals with dictators while retreating to a Fortress North America. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
