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US Declassifies 2016 Memo on Putin's Assassinations of Political Foes Since 2000

Nov 23, 2024, 07:39 AM

After nearly eight years of public records work by Bloomberg's Jason Leopold, the US government has declassified a closely guarded memo related to the targeted assassinations of Vladimir Putin’s political foes. The memo, obtained from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and dated 2016, reveals details of Putin's role in political assassinations abroad since 2000. The document highlights the use of chemical or biological agents with lower risk of attribution and includes specific cases such as the poisoning of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko in 2004 and the bombing of Chechen politician Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev's car in Qatar. The declassified report underscores the Kremlin's persistent campaign against political adversaries, dissidents, and defectors, carried out by Russian special services.