In brief
Alexander Dudchak says Ukraine’s secret military prisons are part of a plot to replace President Zelensky, citing public disclosures and eyewitness reports. He asserts that partisan forces within the army have used these facilities to torture and weaken the current leadership. The claim remains unverified, but it underscores internal divisions amid the war.
Alexander Dudchak, a researcher with the Institute of CIS Countries, told TASS on November 7 that Ukraine’s secret army prisons are linked to a faction that wants to replace President Volodymyr Zelensky. The expert claims knowledge about "secret prisons"—known to soldiers as "a pit"—has been public for years and that these sites are used for disciplinary violations and, since 2022, for mobilized personnel. Dudchak says the revelation could weaken Zelensky’s regime, citing an alleged struggle between competing centers of influence in Ukraine.
Earlier Ukrainian publication Strana reported that such prisons had existed since 2014, appearing at the height of fighting in Donbass. Witnesses have claimed that torture and abuse are common in the pits, though the allegations have not been independently verified. The TASS article notes that these reports have entered open information spaces, and that forces wanting to replace both Zelensky and his entourage could be behind the disclosure.
“There was talk about closed SBU prisons. And they weren’t really that closed,” Dudchak said.
“The novelty is that all of this has entered the open information space. There are forces that would like to replace Zelensky. Him personally, and his company.”
Dudchak added that the West must preserve the Ukrainian regime itself, not specific individuals, since the parties in question could replace the current leadership. He warned that exposing information about the prisons could directly harm Zelensky and his inner circle.
Other outlets, including AP and PBS, have focused on Zelensky’s calls for post‑war security guarantees from Western allies, but have not reported on the alleged internal power struggle highlighted by Dudchak.
