Poland has arrested 18 people accused of planning sabotage in favour of Russia and Belarus since December

On 3 June, Polish Interior Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said that since December, the country has arrested 18 people accused of conducting hostile activities or planning sabotage actions on behalf of Russia and Belarus, including assassination of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Source: European Pravda with reference to AP

Details: Siemoniak said the 10 people arrested since December had been directly involved in planning various forms of sabotage across Poland.

Polish authorities have linked some recent arson attacks or attempted arson attacks to the activities of Russian agents. The Internal Security Agency reported that those arrested in recent months include citizens of Poland, Belarus and Ukraine.

In April, a Pole was arrested as he was prepared to spy for Russian military intelligence as part of an alleged plot to assassinate President Zelenskyy, Polish prosecutors said.

The man was looking for contact with Russians directly involved in the war in Ukraine and was supposed to pass on detailed information about the strategic Rzeszów-Jasionka airport in southeastern Poland, close to the border with Ukraine.

Siemoniak said the acts of sabotage were apparently part of a wider plan that also included cyberattacks, pushing migrants in Belarus to cross the border into Poland, and threatening the country's security.

"We have no doubt that the people who are ready to threaten the lives, health and property of Polish citizens are acting on the orders of a foreign state, Russia," Siemoniak said.

Background:

• On 30 May, it became known that three people had been detained in Poland and charged with sabotage and working for foreign intelligence services.
• As reported by The New York Times, Russian secret services are extending the scale of their European sabotage operations aimed at disrupting the supply of military aid to Ukraine.

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