Journalists Expose Secret Service K Guarding Putin’s Nuclear Suitcase

Journalists have identified employees of the Service K, which guards a specially equipped briefcase used to authorize the use of nuclear weapons in Russia.

The Dossier publication claims that it had obtained internal documents of the Service K and identified 53 people who work there.

Among the numerous captains and colonels, even a major general was discovered. And one of the guards of the nuclear portfolio used to serve on the cruiser Moskva, which Ukraine sank.

Service K is so secretive that its name is mentioned only a few times in open sources.

Officers of this unit accompany the Russian President, Minister of Defense, and Chief of the General Staff everywhere.

Despite all the responsibility of their work, these officers receive a salary that is quite ordinary for contract soldiers in the army.

They prefer to vacation in Russia because they have access to top-secret materials, but they are active on social media, and one of the officers has a sister with American citizenship.

Kazbek and Cheget

It is assumed that the letter “K” refers to “Kazbek” – an automated system for controlling strategic nuclear forces.

The most famous part of this system is the Cheget terminal, also known as the “nuclear suitcase.”

If the country is attacked, satellites and other systems that detect ballistic missile launches and explosions on Russian territory transmit a “missile attack” signal.

It activates Kazbek and enables switching the control system from standby to combat mode.

After that, the president uses the Cheget terminal to contact the Minister of Defense and the Chief of the General Staff, each of whom has his own “nuclear suitcase,” as well as the National Defense Control Center, and issues a preliminary command that activates all nuclear forces.

Only then can the order to launch a nuclear strike be given.

Officials

Dossier discovered 53 people who have been associated with this unit since at least 2021.

To do this, Dossier used not only facial recognition, various leaks, and open data, but also internal Service K documents obtained from the source.

Among them are several questionnaires from the personal files of servicemen, applications for renewal of security clearances, duty schedules drawn up after the start of the war in Ukraine, travel documents, and other materials.

The service identified people associated with the navy: captains first rank Stanislav Gromov, Yevgeny Shikhov, and Dmitry Shumeiko (first rank captains correspond to army colonels).

In addition to the three captains first rank, there are 35 other colonels, 14 servicemen whose rank is unknown (but who are most likely also colonels or captains first rank), and one major general.

Colonel Andrey Zhuravlev is the immediate commander of military unit 26299. In the past, he has been on combat duty himself and, for example, accompanied Putin in December 2016 during his visit to Japan.

The rest of the servicemen hold operational officer positions; they are divided into groups of about 10 each, each with its own superior. Dossier managed to identify two of them – Sergey Vetoshkin and Sergey Khapersky.

The usual schedule involves being on duty for two days in a row. Operators are not assigned to a specific person: the same person can accompany the head of state, and after a while, the Minister of Defense.

Life in the service

Captain Yevgeny Shikhov has perhaps the most unusual career path.

He started out in the Black Sea Fleet and commanded a missile battery on the cruiser Moskva, which participated in the capture of Zmiinyi Island in February 2022 and was sunk in April.

At that time, Shikhov had long since left the navy and for more than 14 years had been a member of the crew of the Il-80, the General Staff’s air command post, also known as the “Doomsday plane.”

It is designed to control troops, including nuclear forces. In 2014, Shikhov received a medal for the occupation of Crimea, and in 2017, he was transferred and began to carry a “nuclear suitcase.”

Despite their unique experience and high responsibility, the Service K earns about the same as other contractors.

Before the war, the salary did not exceed 140-150 thousand rubles per month. After the invasion of Ukraine began, income increased.

The documents available to Dossier show that at least one of the servicemen, who does not hold a command position, started receiving up to RUB 260 thousand.