Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has promised a "
strong response
" after an automatic assassination attempt against his first adviser, an attack linked according to the authorities to the fight against oligarchs.
Read alsoUkraine: President Zelensky's first adviser targeted by an assassination attempt
Sergey Chefir, 57, a longtime friend and associate of Mr Zelensky, escaped unscathed, but his driver was injured in the attack.
He will not give in to "intimidation"
“
The response will be strong,
” Volodymyr Zelensky said in a video recorded in New York where he is attending the United Nations General Assembly, while stressing that he does not know who ordered the operation.
"
To shoot a friend's car from a forest to say hello is a mark of weakness,
" added the Ukrainian leader, promising not to give in to "
intimidation
" and to continue "the
fight against crime. and against influential financial groups
”.
Police said they are investigating three main hypotheses.
According to its leader, Igor Klymenko, it could be an attack linked to
Chefir's "
official functions
", an attempt to "
put pressure on the leaders
" or a desire to "
destabilize
" the country.
In the latter case, the "
participation of foreign special services
" in the attack would be a possibility, Klymenko said, probably referring to Russia, Kiev's geopolitical adversary.
Moscow denies, Washington and London condemn
Moscow immediately denied any role. According to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, the idea of a Russian lead "
has nothing to do with the real state of affairs
". Appearing at the Interior Ministry, Chefir denounced an attempt to “
intimidate
” the Ukrainian president. “
Volodymyr Zelensky is a person with strong will and he is not intimidated. He chose the right path and he will follow it,
”he continued.
Washington and London condemned the attack. “
Criminal violence, including for political ends, is never justified,
” the US Embassy said on Twitter. British Ambassador to Ukraine Melinda Simmons said she was "
very worried
" on Twitter.
The attack took place around 10:00 a.m. (07:00 GMT) on Wednesday, when unknown persons opened fire on the senior official's black sedan near the village of Lisnyky, in the Kiev region.
In total, "
18 shots were fired at the car with automatic weapons
," said the head of the Kiev regional prosecutor's office, Oleksiï Khomenko, quoted by the Interfax-Ukraine agency.
The driver was hospitalized and operated, but his life is not in danger.
The attack associated with Zelensky?
An adviser to the presidency, Mikhaïlo Podoliak, told Interfax-Ukraine that he "
clearly associated
" the attack with Zelensky's efforts to "
reduce the influence of shadow oligarchs
" and "
the destruction of groups. politico-financiers who work for our foreign adversaries
”.
Read also Volodymyr Zelensky, the comedy of power
Zelensky this year announced a campaign to fight against certain oligarchs, extremely wealthy businessmen accused of exploiting the economy of this ex-Soviet republic and of buying the votes of the media and the political class.
Before assuming the presidency of this country among the poorest in Europe in 2019, Volodymyr Zelensky was a famous actor and comedian playing the role of the Ukrainian president in a television series.
Chefir was then his close associate in his production company.
Several attacks since 2014
Zelensky was elected promising change and a fierce fight against the corruption that plagues Ukraine.
But so far its results have been very limited.
Several assassination attempts, successful or not, have targeted politicians and journalists in recent years in Ukraine, a country at war since 2014 with pro-Russian separatists and engaged in a serious crisis with Moscow.
Access to firearms is facilitated by this conflict in the east.
Among the resounding attacks were the murders of former Russian deputy Denis Voronenkov, shot dead in the streets in broad daylight in 2017, and that of investigative journalist from Minsk Pavel Sheremet the previous year, killed in the explosion of his car in Kiev.