Kyiv arms exhibition strike kills senior security officer, SBU official Updated

A senior Ukrainian security officer has been identified among those killed in Russia's July 24 missile strike on a military training ground in the Kyiv region, where a closed defence industry exhibition was taking place.

Colonel Eduard Sirenko, an officer who served with both the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR) of the Ministry of Defence, was killed in the attack, Ukrainian media reported. 

Sirenko previously headed the SBU's Special Operations Centre and had served in Iraq.

The strike, which also killed SBU official Valentyna Savitska and an employee of a Polish defence company, targeted a private military training ground in the Bucha district, where representatives of Ukraine's defence industry had gathered for an arms exhibition.

Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine's military intelligence agency (GUR), said foreign delegations were in the Kyiv area when the missile strike occurred, although he did not specify which countries they represented or whether they were attending the exhibition.

Budanov also sharply criticised the organisers of the event, saying they bore responsibility for ensuring participants' safety during wartime.

"In the context of a full-scale war, the organisers of such events and those who approve them must bear personal responsibility for people's safety," Budanov said. "If security cannot be guaranteed at the highest level, then the event should not take place."

It has since emerged that the exhibition was organised by Armada, an association of Ukrainian drone manufacturers. The organisation said the event was closed to the public, was not advertised online, and that invitations were sent only to registered and vetted participants.

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Valentyna Savitska, head of the Centre for International Cooperation and Strategic Communications at Ukraine's State Security Service (SBU), was killed in a Russian missile strike on the Kyiv region, her husband, Igor Solovey, confirmed on social media.

Solovey, who heads Ukraine's Spravdi Centre for Strategic Communications, announced his wife's death in a message posted on Facebook, Caliber.Az reports.

"My family has suffered a terrible tragedy: these monsters killed my beloved woman and caring wife, loving mother and daughter, Valentyna Savitska," he wrote.

The strike took place on July 24 as Russia launched missiles at multiple locations in the Kyiv region. According to Ukrainian authorities, at least 10 people were killed, and more than 100 others were injured. The attack also caused extensive damage to civilian infrastructure, residential buildings, and transportation facilities.

Ukrainian officials said one of the missiles struck a private military training ground in Kyiv region's Bucha district, where representatives of Ukraine's defence industry had gathered for an arms exhibition.

In addition to Savitska, an employee of a Polish defence company was also reported killed in the attack. Poland's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the victim was not a Polish citizen and added that it continues to provide assistance to other people affected by the strike. The number of those receiving assistance has not yet been disclosed.

Authorities in the Kyiv region declared July 25 a day of mourning in honour of those killed in the missile attack.

By Sabina Mammadli