It sounds like something out of a dark agent thriller: one of the men who sat at the negotiating table in Belarus on Monday at the talks between Russia and Ukraine is dead!

His name: Denis Kireev (other spelling: Kireyev).

Kireev (✝︎44, married, three children) was one of the negotiators of the Ukrainian side, took part in the first round of (unsuccessful) talks in the city of Gomel.

There are conflicting reports about the circumstances of his death. However, one thing is clear: he was killed.

According to initial reports, he was shot dead by Ukraine's domestic intelligence agency SBU - while trying to escape arrest. Reason: According to this version, Kireev was a Russian agent. He has leaked information from the negotiations to Putin's people - high treason!

This was reported, among other things, by the Ukrainian news site "Pravda," which referred to confirmation from government circles.

According to other rumors, he was even a double agent in the service of both countries. Investigative journalist Michael Weiss writes on Twitter that he thinks this is plausible. And that the SBU eliminated him, too. A former intelligence chief told him that Kireev spent "as much time" hiding enemy spies as he did catch them.

Hours later, however, another Ukrainian intelligence service – the military intelligence agency GUR – contradicted. According to him, Kireev was one of three GUR men who died in a special operation. The military service wrote on its Facebook page that it had rendered its country heroic service and had been killed with honor in its defense.

It is also known about Kireev that he worked in the banking and private equity business. He (source: news portal "Obozrevatel") was already charged in 2020 on suspicion of espionage to Russia. He often traveled to Russia and has connections to oligarchs who work for former President Viktor Yanukovych, who is close to Putin.

Denis Kireew (right back) set at the negotiating table

The same news portal noticed another bizarre detail: Kireev was not even named as a negotiator on the official list of the Ukrainian presidential office. But photos clearly show that he was sitting at the Gomel table alongside Kyiv representatives.