ATO Staff: Ukraine Is Not Involved in Plotnitsky Assassination Attempt

Ukrainian side is not involved in assassination attempt of Igor Plotnitsky, one of the heads of the so-called ‘Luhansk People’s Republic’, the Presidential Administration spokesperson on ATO Oleksandr Motuzianyk said on August 6 during the press briefing.

"Ukrainian side is not involved in this assassination attempt — it would have been illogical and not solve any issues anyway." Motuzianyk reminded the journalists this was not the first assassination attempt against the heads of the terroristic organizations ‘DNR’ and ‘LNR’, as there were attacks against Aleksey Mozgovoy, Russian colonel Bushuyev, Pavel Dryomov earlier. "Most likely, this is the result of internal strife, division of spheres of influence and power struggle," he added.

Adviser to the Head of SBU Yuriy Tandyt confirmed that the assassination attempt did take place, according to the information from his ‘internal channels’. He said it evidenced that the struggle for power and cash flows continues. "We also need to take into consideration that nothing happens there without the influence of the neighboring country [Ed: Russia]. Cleansing and ‘reorganization’ continue, it can’t be done without the use of force," he added.

When asked who would benefit from removing Plotnitsky, Tandyt said we should wait several days to understand more about this situation.

Source: Nataliya Nechay, Ukrayinska Pravda