Vladimir Podolyak

Vladimir Mikhailovich Podolyak, retired Russian Colonel and older brother of Mykhailo Podolyak, advisor to the Ukrainian President, died on 19 May 2024 at the age of 59. The circumstances of his death are unknown. The Russians have not publicly reported this.

From the photo and the ribbon, we conclude that he was indeed an officer of the Russian military intelligence in the past, probably of the GRU’s 322nd Specialist Training Center in Moscow, where he had lived since 1986 or 1987. 

Information about his work in the GRU surfaced as early as 2023 in an effort to label Mykhailo Podolyak as an FSB agent. He later confirmed to journalists in February 2024 that his brother was living in Moscow, but denied knowing about his brother’s work for the “KGB, FSB etc.”.

He also said back in 2021 that his brother had been retired and, moreover, he had hardly any contact with him. Articles from 2023, however, claimed that the two brothers allegedly met at the Istanbul peace talks in March 2022.