The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) has served another suspicion on Volodymyr Sivkovych, deputy secretary of the National Security and Defence Council (NSDC) under President Viktor Yanukovych, for organising the beating of students on Maydan.
The agency reports that Sivkovych was recruited by Russia in the late nineties, when he was a career officer of the USSR KGB and FSB. The official was tasked by the top political leadership of Russia to prevent Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration.
It has been documented that in October 2013, he met with Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolay Patrushev as part of consultations between the NSDC delegations of the two countries in Odesa. At this event, Sivkovych received instructions to continue subversive activities against Ukraine and to suppress potential protests over Ukraine's refusal to join the EU.
After the start of student protests on Maydan Nezalezhnosti, the Deputy Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council began to implement Russia's plans. On the night of 29-30 November 2013, he personally supervised the dispersal and beating of students from the Kyiv police chief’s office.
Then, due to the unlawful actions of law enforcement officers, 55 participants in a peaceful assembly on Independence Square in Kyiv suffered bodily injuries of varying severity, and more than 300 participants were forced to flee the city centre and hide in St Michael's Cathedral. These events led to a socio-political crisis and mass protests against the political leadership of the country.
In turn, this led to the strengthening of separatism in certain Regions of Ukraine and was later used by Russia to conduct subversive activities against our country.
After the Maydan events, the socio-political crisis made it much more difficult for the various branches of government to consolidate their efforts to counter Russia's "hybrid war" against Ukraine and the annexation of territories.
It will be noted that by his actions, Sivkovych created exceptional preconditions for Russia to take active steps to occupy part of the territory of Ukraine.
The suspect is currently hiding from investigation and trial in the territory of Russia and is one of the leaders of the anti-Ukrainian movement created by the Russian special services.
- On 10 June 2020, Volodymyr Sivkovych was put on the international wanted list. In July 2022, the State Bureau of Investigation notified Sivkovych of suspicion of treason.
- In April 2023, the SBU and the SBI published new evidence of Kulinich and Sivkovych's work for the Russian FSB. Law enforcement officers published an interception of a conversation.
- In December 2023, the SBU reported that Sivkovych, recruited by the FSB, coordinated Shufrych's information sabotage.