A Moscow court on Friday issued an arrest warrant for the head of the military secret service of Ukraine, Kyril Budanov, accusing him of organizing “terrorist attacks” on the territory of Russia, the state news agency RIA reported, citing Reuters.

According to the Russian court, Budanov was charged with crimes related to terrorism and arms smuggling.

The preventive measure against him was announced “in absentia”, allegedly admitting that Budanov could not be detained.

Since the start of the conflict in Ukraine last year, a series of explosions have hit Russian infrastructure, weapons depots and military facilities. Russia has blamed Ukraine for many of these strikes, while Kyiv has neither confirmed nor denied its involvement.

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) previously said Budanov masterminded the attack that damaged a bridge connecting Russia to the annexed Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in October.

Russia also blamed Ukrainian spies for the bombings that killed Daria Dugon, the daughter of a pro-Kremlin nationalist writer and pro-war blogger from St. Petersburg.

Budanov is a priority target for the Russians, with at least ten assassination attempts on him, according to a Washington Post analysis.

HotNews.ro interviewed Budanov in March of this year, when we asked him how he felt “in the position of a person who has been the target of several assassination attempts.”

“I feel completely comfortable, this is a specific situation for me, because I have been in this position (object of attacks) for several years. However, I live freely, nothing bothers me. What’s more, I like this pose because it’s proof that I’m doing the right thing. Gratitude to me from the enemy is the highest appreciation,” replied the head of Ukrainian military intelligence.