Former Prosecutor General of Ukraine Ruslan Kravchenko stated that in the fall, violent actions were allegedly being prepared against him in Austria. According to him, the leadership of NABU and SAPO could be involved in organizing this, orders came from the President's Office, and among the executors were active servicemen of the Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR).
Kravchenko reported this on October 28 in his Telegram channel, commenting on the October detentions of Ukrainians in Austria. Independent confirmation of the alleged preparation of an attack on him is currently absent.
According to the former official, back in September he received information about a group of people who were allegedly sent to Austria after him to commit illegal violent actions.
"Then I was told directly that the leadership of NABU and SAPO asked to send this group", claims Kravchenko.
He also stated that instructions to the group allegedly came from the President's Office. At the same time, the ex-Prosecutor General admitted that he has no reliable information about the specific person who could have given such an order.
Kravchenko directly linked his claims to the detention in Austria of two alleged employees of the Ukrainian military intelligence.
According to him, the detainees are active servicemen of the special unit of the GUR "Artan". The ex-Prosecutor General also claims that the commander of this unit, Viktor Torkotiuk, was in Austria during the detention of his subordinates.
Kravchenko stated that one of the detainees previously worked in the external surveillance unit of NABU. In addition, according to his information, Torkotiuk was allegedly promised a position in exchange for completing the task.
No documentary evidence of these claims is provided in the post. Austrian law enforcement officers have not publicly confirmed that the detainees belonged specifically to "Artan" or that they prepared an attack on the former Prosecutor General.
Kravchenko also mentioned the detention of "Ukrainska Pravda" journalists in Vienna.
According to him, Austrian law enforcement officers continue the investigation against four citizens of Ukraine, including two representatives of "Ukrainska Pravda".
The ex-Prosecutor General drew attention to the fact that investigative journalist Mykhailo Tkach was in Monaco on the eve of the summer incident involving alleged GUR employees, as well as in Vienna during the detention of Ukrainians.
Kravchenko stated that he sees certain parallels between the events in Monaco and Austria. At the same time, he noted that establishing a possible connection between these episodes falls within the competence of European law enforcement agencies.
However, Kravchenko has not published any evidence of journalists' involvement in the alleged preparation of an attack on him.
Austria confirms investigation, but not the assassination attempt version
According to the Austrian public broadcaster ORF, two citizens of Ukraine suspected of conducting secret intelligence activities harmful to Austria were detained at the beginning of October.
On October 21, it became known that the Vienna Regional Court extended their detention until November 20. The investigation is conducted by the State Security and Intelligence Directorate of Austria (DSN). The detainees deny the allegations.
Separately, Austrian law enforcement officers detained "Ukrainska Pravda" journalist Mykhailo Tkach and cameraman Yaroslav Bondarenko on October 8. They were in Vienna performing an editorial assignment related to the search for Ruslan Kravchenko.
Both were later released, as the suspicion of espionage against them was not confirmed. At the same time, according to a report by ORF from October 21, the journalists formally remained subjects of an ongoing investigation.
As reported earlier by "Kurs Ukrainy", the Vienna Prosecutor's Office explained the detention of journalists by witness statements about surveillance of one object. However, the assumption about their joint activity with the two other detainees was not confirmed.
Tkach himself previously assumed that the statements that became the basis for the detention of the film crew could have been provided by people connected with Kravchenko or his entourage. The journalist reported about his intention to seek access to the materials of the Austrian investigation.
Thus, the parties put forward different versions of the circumstances of the events in Vienna. Currently, there is no confirmation of any connection between the journalists and the alleged preparation of an attack, or of the involvement of the leadership of Ukrainian state bodies in such actions.
Based on materials from: Ruslan Kravchenko, ORF, "Ukrainska Pravda"
