Car of former adviser to fugitive ex-Ukrainian PM Azarov explodes in Moscow
A Toyota SUV carrying Russian propagandist Sergei Zavorotny, a former aide to ex-Ukrainian prime minister Mykola Azarov, was hit by an apparent explosive device in Moscow, leaving him hospitalised with shrapnel wounds.
By Lucas Navarro ·
A Toyota SUV exploded while in motion on Kirovogradskaya Street in Moscow's Chertanovo district, according to Russian Telegram channels and the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation. The vehicle was being driven by Sergei Zavorotny, a Russian propagandist who once served as an adviser to fugitive former Ukrainian prime minister Mykola Azarov.
Reports say the blast occurred after the car had covered roughly 200 metres from the courtyard where it had set off. The force of the explosion threw the driver out of the vehicle and onto the roadway.
Early information indicates that an improvised explosive device had been placed under the driver's seat and was detonated while the SUV was moving.
Zavorotny, aged 72, survived the blast. He was taken to hospital by medics with shrapnel injuries to his chest and back, along with serious damage to his legs.
Zavorotny is a Russian publicist who holds the academic title of candidate of historical sciences and has previously worked in the Russian State Duma. During Azarov's time as prime minister of Ukraine, he acted as his adviser. After Azarov fled to Moscow, Zavorotny helped set up the so-called Save Ukraine Committee in July 2015.
The fifth volume of the US Senate Select Committee on Intelligence report on Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election names Zavorotny as an officer of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service engaged in influence operations.
Over the years, Zavorotny has backed Kremlin policy and promoted anti-Ukrainian narratives. He publicly described the Revolution of Dignity as a coup d'état, alleged that Western states exercised external governance over Ukraine, ran the Antifashist propaganda resource, and co-authored a Ukrainophobic book about the events of 2014.
The Moscow explosion came a day after a similar incident near Russia's second city. On the morning of 12 November, a car blew up in the settlement of Shushary in the Pushkinsky District of St Petersburg. Russian media reported that the vehicle was driven by a Russian colonel, who died at the scene.
