Russia's FSB said it dismantled a Polish intelligence network in Kaliningrad and remanded two alleged agents, announcing the operation on Poland's Independence Day.
Two people accused of gathering information about military sites in the Kaliningrad region have been detained, the Federal Security Service said, describing them as Polish intelligence agents.
The Federal Security Service has exposed and contained Poland’s intelligence network operating in the Kaliningrad Region.
A court in the Kaliningrad region ordered the two held in custody on espionage charges. Under Russian law, espionage carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, The Moscow Times reported.
The FSB linked the detainees to Poland's Military Intelligence Service and to the Internal Security Agency.
An exclave on NATO's eastern flank
Kaliningrad is a Russian exclave on the Baltic Sea that borders Poland and Lithuania, sitting on NATO's eastern flank. Because of that location and the high concentration of military and border infrastructure there, the FSB said it considers the region especially sensitive.
The service accused the two of gathering and passing on information about Russian Defence Ministry servicemen and facilities, and also said they collected data on the social and economic situation in the region, on migration and on social policy.
Beyond the arrests, the FSB said it had issued official warnings to seven Polish citizens and three Russian citizens suspected of contacts with Polish intelligence services.
The seven Polish citizens were barred from entering or remaining in Russian territory for an extended period.
The aforementioned Polish citizens have been barred from entering our country for an extended period,
The FSB said those who received warnings could still face prosecution as spies or traitors.
Warsaw calls the claim a provocation
The Polish answer came from the spokesman for the minister in charge of intelligence and security services.
I do not comment on material posted online by Russian services
On the National Independence Day, I regard it [the FSB claims] above all as yet another provocation and act of disinformation.
I appeal to everyone not to amplify hostile narratives or play into Russian propaganda.
The date and the cases behind it
The FSB released its statement on 11 November, when Poland marks Independence Day. This holiday commemorates the restoration of sovereignty in 1918 after 123 years of partition by the Russian, Prussian and Austro-Hungarian empires.
- Late OctoberŚwidnica
Polish authorities arrest Alexander Mashovets, a 55-year-old Russian national, on espionage charges.
- A day beforeNear Warsaw
The Internal Security Agency detains two Ukrainian citizens accused of gathering information for Russian intelligence.
- 11 NovemberKaliningrad
The FSB says it has broken up a Polish intelligence network in the region and that a court remanded two people in custody.
Two Ukrainian citizens were detained a day earlier in Mińsk Mazowiecki, near Warsaw, Poland's Internal Security Agency said. The agency accused them of setting fire to several cars and of collecting information for Russian intelligence.
Polish authorities had detained six people earlier on suspicion of spying for Russia: five Polish citizens and one Russian woman, according to law enforcement. Those six were allegedly involved in illegal shipments of materials for military use.
Interfax, the state newswire, carried the FSB statement. The service's Public Relations Center released an image it said showed the arrest of an alleged Polish intelligence officer in Kaliningrad.
What is still open
The names and nationalities of the two people held in Kaliningrad have not been disclosed. Novaya Gazeta Europe reported that the FSB did not release them, and The Moscow Times reported that it was not immediately clear whether the two were Polish, Russian or another nationality.
The Russian figures and the gaps around them
Russia's account
FSB statement via Interfax
- Seven Polish citizens barred from entering or remaining in Russia for an extended period
- Six other people suspected of helping Polish intelligence barred from entering Russia
- Visas annulled for 14 Polish citizens
What is still open
Unresolved points
- Whether the 14 annulled visas and the separate six entry bans cover different people or overlap
- The names and nationalities of the two people remanded in custody
- Whether the FSB allegations hold, and when any trial would start
Poland has confirmed none of the operational detail in the Russian account. No trial date has been set for the two remanded in custody.
