MOSCOW, December 8. /TASS/. Russia will provide protection to people that could become targets of terrorist attacks, said Viktor Bondarev, first deputy chairman of the Federation Council’s Defense and Security Committee.
The senator made the statement after the RBC-Ukraine news agency published a list of politicians in Russia who could suffer the same fate as the recently assassinated former Ukrainian lawmaker Ilya Kiva. The list includes former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich, former Ukrainian Prime Minister Nikolay Azarov, former lawmaker Oleg Tsaryov, former leader of the Opposition Platform For Life party, which was banned in Ukraine, Viktor Medvedchuk, and Kherson Region Governor Vladimir Saldo.
"The people that could potentially be targeted in terrorist attacks, including the people from this list of five persons, should be and will be provided with additional protection. We will try to reduce the threat of terrorist attacks against them to a minimum. This will be the most appropriate response to the potential threat of terrorist attacks from the special services of Ukraine, which are living out their last days," the senator said on Telegram.
The lawmaker said that Kiev's terrorist methods of physical elimination of its opponents "is all that is left for [Ukrainian President Vladimir] Zelensky's regime, which realizes that it will soon come to an end."
"They (the politicians on the RBC-Ukraine list - TASS) are currently accused in Ukraine of treason, and several criminal cases have been opened against them. Almost all of them have been convicted and sentenced in absentia to long prison terms. The Kiev regime regards them as traitors to their homeland and as collaborators," Bondarev said.
The senator also said Russia will fight to the fullest extent of the law against those who organize and commit terrorist attacks.
"No mercy should be expected here," he said.
On December 7, the Federation Council, acting on a proposal from Deputy Speaker Konstantin Kosachev, instructed the committees for defense and security and international affairs to prepare systemic measures to protect Russian politicians, public figures and members of the news media from the threat of terrorist attacks by the Kiev regime. Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko backed the proposal and demanded a progress report to be submitted at a session on December 13.
Kiva’s murder
On December 6, Kiva was gunned down as he was taking a stroll in the park adjacent to the countryside community outside Moscow where he lived. Kiva died on the spot after an unidentified assailant fired several shots. Investigators and forensic experts examined the scene, finding two pistol cartridge casings, a cartridge and some other items. A search was also performed of the victim’s car and hotel room where he was staying in recent months.