Security Service of Ukraine

The Security Service of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Служба безпеки України, romanized: Sluzhba bezpeky Ukrainy [ˈsluʒbɐ bezˈpɛkɪ ʊkrɐˈjinɪ]; abbreviated as SBU [СБУ] or SSU) is the main internal security agency of the Ukrainian government. Its main duties include counter-intelligence activity and combating organized crime and terrorism. The Constitution of Ukraine defines the SBU as a military formation, and its staff are considered military personnel with ranks. It is subordinated directly under the authority of the president of Ukraine. The SBU also operates its own special forces unit, the Alpha Group.

The SBU was formed after the Declaration of Independence of Ukraine in 1991, succeeding the Ukrainian branch of the KGB and inheriting much of its personnel, facilities and infrastructure. The agency has been viewed negatively by the Ukrainian public for much of its history, as it was widely regarded as corrupt and was best known for arresting and intimidating political dissidents. After the Revolution of Dignity in 2014, the SBU went through a restructuring with the transition to the new government, because of its corruption and possible infiltration by intelligence agencies of Russia.

The SBU has since been involved in operations against Russia, pro-Russian separatists in Donbas and other Russian sympathizers after the start of the war in Donbas and the wider Russo-Ukrainian War. The agency has also begun to perform operations outside of Ukraine, some of the most notable actions include the 2022 Crimean Bridge explosion, Operation Spiderweb, and involvement in multiple assassinations in Russia.