Now everyone’s attention is focused on the identity of one of Skripal’s poisoners, an employee of the Russian GRU, Boshirov-Chepiga.
What is known today? Indeed, this man, according to an investigation by journalists of Novaya Gazeta, has the rank of colonel of military intelligence. Moreover, the published information suggests that Boshirov-Chepiga actually received the title “Hero of Russia” from the hands of the Russian president (by a confidential decree). For what did he get it? As we know, for the events in Ukraine in 2014.
We really do not want to repeat everything that journalists have already published in such publications as Insider, Bellingcat, Novaya Gazeta, etc. It seems to us that it is much more interesting to talk about those versions that are now put up for a general review in the information space.
We have to proceed from the fact that the FSB has leaked information about who is the so-called Ruslan Boshirov. The employees of the Lubyanka leaked the passport data to Boshirov-Chepiga through the Federal Migration Service. This was done, of course, with aim to inflict a reputational and financial blow on the GRU and the Ministry of Defense as a whole.
But now is not about that. We have reminded you about these moments only because they have a definite relation to what is happening now – to the GRU attempt to hide the real role of the structure and Anatoly Chepiga in the events in Ukraine in 2014.
Let’s take it in order. According to Radio Liberty, the name of Chepiga is really stamped on granite slabs near the monument to Rokossovskiy – on the territory of the Far Eastern Military Command School of the Ministry of Defense (Blagoveshchensk). Moreover, the website of the DOSAAF branch in the Amur Region reports that the title of Hero of Russia was awarded to Anatoly Chepiga in December 2014 “for fulfilling the peacekeeping mission”.
It’s not hard to understand: we are talking about events in Ukraine. But then the extremely non-random reflections of various «investigators» have started to appear.
The Novaya Gazeta website published an interview with three colleagues of Chepiga in the 282nd Special Forces Detachment. And one of them (a person who wished to remain anonymous) said that the Skripal’s, poisoner, received the title of hero for a successful operation in the Crimea — for annexation, if to be briefly.
“The title of Hero of Russia Chepiga got for the Crimea. The names of the graduates who received the title of Hero are carved on the stele near the monument to Rokossovskiy in the Military Command School. The names of Chepiga and Colonel Alexander Popov are there. They got the title of Hero of Russia by one confidential presidential decree, specifically for the Crimea. Popov commanded a special detachment then, and Chepiga was a lieutenant colonel at that time. If to be true, I can’t even imagine what exactly Chepiga was doing in the Crimea”, – a colleague says.
Further he made some suggestions: an operation to seize the building of the Council of Ministers of Crimea; the seizure of the Belbek airfield and the disarmament of the marine infantry brigade of the Ukrainian army in Feodosia.
It looks like that Chepiga is a real Russian military intelligence officer, but he did not participate in bloody covert operations on the territory of Ukraine. As Novaya Gazeta says, all three of the above mentioned actions passed without bloodshed.
But here’s a bad luck. Then new information appears, obtained by the former investigative journalist of the Investigation Management Center Sergey Kanev: Chepiga received a hero for transporting Yanukovych to Russia.
“Chepiga-Boshirov participated in the evacuation of Yanukovych to Russia. At least this is indicated by my sources. He and his Special Forces detachment arrived at Mezhigorye, the residence of Yanukovich. He was there, guarded Yanukovych. From there they transported him to the Crimea and after that to Russia”, – the journalist said.
And again we see that the journalist, as in the case of the investigators of the Novaya Gazeta, refers to some sources whose names he does not want to give. Again, it is said about some extremely simple operation to evacuate the former president, as a peaceful action (without blood).
It gets the impression that someone (suppose that now it’s all about the GRU itself), realizing that it’s impossible to hide Chepiga’s past, so successfully pulled out by the FSB for all to see, and that is impossible to escape from the fact of the latter’s participation in the events in Ukraine 2014, came to a single conclusion: to show that Chepiga is a man who was not engaged in the murder of Ukrainians. And what about the Skripal: he didn’t die. The logic is approximately as follows.
And this has already been granted concession from the Kremlin in the form of a speech by the press secretary of the Russian president, Dmitry Peskov. After all, he said: “I don’t have information that a person with this name was awarded”, – adding to this that the Kremlin no longer has a desire to discuss the so-called Boshirov and Petrov.
However, this is unlikely to stop the FSB and another department – the Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation. The head of the latter, Sergey Naryshkin, clearly indicated that Skripal was poisoned unprofessionally. It is a light signal to the GRU, which shows that the story with Chepiga will not be closed so easily.
And why not close, because it lost sight of another interesting point, version. Indeed, for some reason, many people forget now that in addition to the annexation of Crimea by Russia and the escape of Yanukovych, there was another bloody action in Kiev, including the shooting of protesters on Maidan.
Why doesn’t anyone talk about it? Perhaps, Boshirov participated in this operation. After all, in the Crimea, the Russians already had enough power to capture all the above-mentioned objects. Yanukovych was taken out by his guards, who also didn’t really need Anatoly Chepiga. But he could commit crimes on Maidan.
Why? Because initially the leadership of the country of the occupier considered two scenarios for the development of events on the Maidan: one was developed by the GRU and other by the FSB. That is why we saw two high representatives of these structures in Kiev before shooting people on the Maidan, two competitors who are now fighting for control of the Donbas: Surkov and Beseda.
It is worth to note that “Moscow guests” who came at that time to “help in stabilizing the situation” did everything opposite. But, in addition to this “official” group, there were other groups in Ukraine — illegal groups, both the FSB and the GRU, which, under various cover from journalists, such as the already well-known Kotz and Steshin, to the protesters acted on opposite sides of the barricades.
That is why there is a fairly high ratio of the likelihood that Chepiga participated in this action – the shooting on Maidan. And this means a completely different crime and another accusation. Moreover, such a proven fact can serve as a much more weighty argument proving that Russia was stood from the beginning behind a series of crimes in Ukraine that ended in hostilities in the Donbas, where the GRU and the FSB clashed with new force.
The same opinion is shared by the former head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine, Lieutenant General Alexander Skipalsky. The detachment of the GRU colonel Anatoly Boshirov (Chepiga) could be in Kiev during the Revolution of Dignity, and take an active part in the escalation of events on the Maidan. He stated this in an exclusive comment to Guildhall edition.
“Theoretically, the detachment of Boshirov-Chepiga could be in Kiev then (December 2013 – February 2014) and take part in the escalation and executions of people. Practically I cannot confirm it, because I did not take part in the research and study of documents. I know that on the base of the “Alpha” (a special unit of the SBU) more than 20 representatives of Russian Special Forces lived in a separate house, and any members of the Ukrainian special services did not have a pass there. They could change clothes, both in the form of Berkut and in the form with unmarked signs”, – Skipalsky said.
But that’s not all. The most interesting thing is what happened to Petrov, the second poisoner Skripal. After all, nothing is heard about him. And here, as you understand, there are only two options: either they liquidated him, or decided to recoup on a more valuable employee — Chepiga. And this is the essence of the Russian state: it does not protect the performers, it substitutes them.
In addition, some representatives of Russian foreign intelligence service, such as the head of the “International Anti-Bandera Movement”, Dmitry Yermolaev, are already beginning to promote the version that some “radical forces in Russia” (implying the GRU) are preparing a power coup in the Russia.
And there is nothing surprising, because an anonymous source of the Investigation Management Center in the Russian military intelligence told about this earlier in their previous investigation about the war between the GRU and the FSB: “The leadership of the country is constantly whispered in the ear: “The GRU is preparing a military coup. At the same time, the entire responsibility for Syria and the fight against terrorism lies with us. It turns out that instead of successfully solving combat missions, we are fighting off the FSB”.
IR