Putin general behind Salisbury Novichok poisoning 'killed' as Ukrainian drones blow up Russian oil tanker in Mediterranean

Andrey Averyanov is a top-ranking officer within Russia’s GRU military intelligence and has for years been associated by Western investigators with some of the Kremlin’s most infamous overseas covert operations.

He is widely believed to have previously led GRU Unit 29155, an elite shadow unit accused of conducting assassinations, bomb attacks and destabilisation campaigns across Europe at Moscow’s behest.

Now, unverified claims shared by a pro-Ukraine Telegram channel allege the 60-year-old was killed in the strike.

The attack targeted the vessel Qendil in neutral international waters roughly 2,000 kilometres from Ukrainian territory, according to SBU officials who spoke to multiple news outlets on Friday.

An SBU source described the operation as "new, unprecedented" and emphasised Ukraine's expanding military capabilities.

"The enemy must understand that Ukraine will not stop and will strike them anywhere in the world, wherever they may be," the official stated.

The Oman-flagged aframax tanker, built in 2006 and weighing 115,400 deadweight tonnes, suffered critical damage rendering it completely inoperable, according to Ukrainian officials and British maritime security firm Vanguard.

Crucially, the vessel carried no cargo when the drones struck, eliminating any risk of pollution or ecological harm to the Mediterranean region.

Footage captured of the attack shows a huge fireball explosion on board, which is reported to have caused "critical damage" to Russia's ship.

Ship tracking data from MarineTraffic indicated the Qendil was positioned near Crete on Friday morning, sailing parallel to Libya's coastline whilst travelling from the Indian port of Sikka towards Russia's Baltic port of Ust Luga.

Ukrainian officials justified the strike by asserting the Qendil had been transporting Russian crude oil to evade Western sanctions, with revenues directly financing Moscow's military campaign.

They said: "The Russian Federation used this tanker to circumvent sanctions and earn money that went to the war against Ukraine

"Therefore, from the point of view of international law and the laws and customs of war, this is an absolutely legitimate target for the SBU."

The SBU further declared that the operation demonstrates Kyiv's determination to pursue Russian assets globally, refusing to allow vessels supporting Moscow's war effort to operate without consequence.

This operation represents a dramatic expansion of Ukraine's maritime warfare capabilities, which until now had been largely confined to the Black Sea and Sea of Azov regions.

Russia's shadow fleet, estimated to comprise up to 1,000 vessels that frequently change flags and have opaque ownership structures, has enabled Moscow to continue exporting crude oil despite Western restrictions.

The strike was announced while Vladimir Putin held his annual end-of-year press conference, in which he said Ukraine was showing signs of "willingness to engage".

He said: "So far, we don’t really see such readiness (from Ukraine) ... But still we see ... certain signals, including from the Kyiv regime, that they are ready to engage in some kind of dialogue.

"The only thing I want to say is that ⁠we have always said this: we are ready and willing to end this conflict peacefully, based on the principles I outlined last June [2024] at the Russian ministry of foreign affairs, and by addressing the root causes that led to this crisis."

Several European leaders and security experts believe some of these ships have also been deployed for hybrid warfare operations across the continent.

President Vladimir Putin has previously condemned Ukrainian attacks on tankers as piracy, threatening to cut off Kyiv's Black Sea access in retaliation.