Monaco bomb victim accuses Ukrainian military intelligence of attack
A Ukrainian businessman injured in a Monaco bombing has directly accused Kyiv's military intelligence agency of the attack, an unprecedented allegation that threatens to strain Ukraine's relations with its European backers.
Vadym Iermolaiev has publicly accused the GUR, Ukraine's military intelligence agency, of orchestrating the bombing that injured him, critically wounded his partner, and harmed his 13-year-old son. French investigators identified Ukrainian national Anastasiia Berezovska as the suspected bomber after an explosive device detonated in a public place. Days later, Berezovska was found dead in a forest near Kyiv. "Based on the investigative evidence available to us, we have no doubt that serving officers of the main intelligence directorate of the ministry of defence of Ukraine, commonly known as the GUR, were directly involved in this attempted assassination," Iermolaiev said in a statement released by his lawyers.
Ukrainian authorities have arrested two men for Berezovska’s murder: serving GUR officer Vladyslav Reut and former law enforcement officer Oleksandr Zhykovych. Prosecutors claim the pair forced Berezovska at gunpoint into a car before driving her to a forest near the village of Yuriv, about 40 miles west of the capital. Kyiv has sought to frame the case as a rogue operation, alleging Reut concealed his contacts and acted without authorisation.
Iermolaiev directly rejected this narrative. "According to the evidence currently available, the conspiracy extended beyond the direct perpetrators and organisers to include serving GUR officers connected to them, including individuals close to the agency’s current and former leadership," he said. He described the blast as powerful enough to tear apart steel railings and destroy the stone steps outside his home. "This was not a warning. It was an attempt to kill not only me, but my family as well," he said.
For European governments, the allegations are highly sensitive. While Ukraine has carried out lethal operations against Russian military officers inside Russia, there is no precedent for an explosive attack on European Union territory. If the accusations gain credibility, the case risks straining relations with European partners at a politically delicate moment for President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is already facing scrutiny over his dismissal of defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov.
The motive remains unclear, intersecting both geopolitics and alleged organised crime. In 2023, Ukraine sanctioned Iermolaiev, whose fortune Forbes estimated at $220m, accusing him of continuing to trade alcohol in Russian-occupied Crimea and paying millions in taxes to the Russian treasury. However, authorities are also examining whether the bombing was a contract killing tied to his family. Iermolaiev’s adult son, Artur, has been accused in Ukraine of creating a criminal organisation involved in large-scale telephone fraud in Dnipro, a scheme long associated with organised crime groups.
Iermolaiev detailed the physical toll of the attack in his statement. His partner, Anna, sustained "catastrophic and irreversible injuries", while their son was left with burns, fractures and other serious injuries. "I remain in intensive care and am only now beginning the long process of recovery," he added.
