Photo: Warsaw
Poland's Internal Security Agency (ABW), as part of an investigation carried out jointly with other European security agencies, carried out searches aimed at identifying Russian espionage.
The agency said in a statement on Thursday. March 28, reports Reuters.
The leadership of Poland, which plays a central role in Western military supplies to Ukraine, states that the country is one of the main targets for Russian spies.
Warsaw accuses Russia and Belarus in attempts to destabilize the situation in the country.
"Actions aimed at organizing pro-Russian initiatives and media campaigns in EU countries have been documented", – ABW said in a statement. The document, in particular, mentions the website voice-of-europe.eu, which publishes pro-Russian materials.
On Tuesday, March 26, searches were carried out in Warsaw and Tychy (a city located in western Poland) , the document notes. The operation was coordinated with partners from other countries, in particular from the Czech Republic.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte called reports of attempts by pro-Russian forces to influence EU politicians alarming. He stressed that the Netherlands “will do everything necessary” in this situation.
"This shows how great the risk of foreign influence is, – Rutte said while speaking to reporters in The Hague. – This is a threat to our democracy, our free elections, our freedom of speech – everything.”
On Wednesday, March 27, the Czech government imposed sanctions against two people, including pro-Russian Ukrainian politician Viktor Medvedchuk and the news site voteofeurope.com, for what they noted official Prague, led a pro-Russian influence operation in Europe.
ABW's current actions are the result of an investigation completed in January of this year, during which charges were brought against a Polish citizen suspected of spying for Russian intelligence services.
Prepared by: Sergey Daga