On Friday, February 6, 2026, a high-profile assassination attempt sent shockwaves through the Russian capital when Lieutenant General Vladimir Alekseyev, the first deputy head of the GRU (Russia’s military intelligence agency), was shot and critically wounded in northwest Moscow.
The attack occurred around 7:30 a.m. in the stairwell of his high-rise apartment building. According to preliminary reports from the Russian Investigative Committee and local news outlets like Kommersant, the assailant appears to have utilized a sophisticated ruse, potentially posing as a food delivery courier to bypass building security.
Alekseyev was reportedly shot multiple times—including twice in the back—as he moved through the elevator lobby. Despite the ambush, the 65-year-old general reportedly attempted to fended off his attacker before the gunman fled the scene, leaving Alekseyev in critical condition. He was rushed to a high-security military hospital where he remains in intensive care.
Alekseyev is one of the most significant figures in the Russian military hierarchy to be targeted since the start of the conflict in Ukraine nearly four years ago. As the No. 2 official at the GRU, he has been a central architect of Russia’s covert operations, including the initial intelligence gathering for the 2022 invasion.
He is perhaps most famous internationally for his alleged role in the 2018 Novichok poisoning of Sergei Skripal in Salisbury, UK, an act for which he remains under heavy British and European sanctions.
Domestically, Alekseyev was a key bridge between the Ministry of Defense and the Wagner Group; he was notably filmed in June 2023 negotiating with the late Yevgeny
Prigozhin during the mercenary group’s brief mutiny in Rostov-on-Don. While he was briefly rumored to have fallen out of favor following the mutiny, he ultimately retained his powerful position, overseeing specialized Spetsnaz units and intelligence networks.
Geopolitical Fallout and Context
The timing of the shooting is particularly striking, occurring just 24 hours after a second round of U.S.-mediated peace talks in Abu Dhabi concluded between Russian and Ukrainian delegations.
Diplomatic Sabotage: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov immediately labeled the shooting a “terrorist act” orchestrated by the “Zelenskyy regime,” claiming the attack was a deliberate attempt to derail the fragile progress made in the UAE.
Negotiation Ties: Interestingly, Alekseyev’s direct superior, Admiral Igor Kostyukov, had been leading the Russian delegation in Abu Dhabi. The Kremlin has used the incident to frame Ukraine as an “unreliable partner” for peace.
Security Lapses: The attack has ignited a firestorm of criticism from Russia’s influential “Z-blogger” community. Military commentators have questioned how such a high-ranking officer, who was born in Soviet Ukraine and was a known high-value target, could be left so vulnerable in the heart of the capital.
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