An investigation by European security authorities has revealed a Russian trace in the organization of incidents with burning parcels at airports in Germany, Poland and Britain.
UNN reports with reference to DW and Süddeutsche Zeitung.
Details
"Symptoms" of hybrid warfare are becoming increasingly visible in Europe, with traces leading to the executive floors of the Kremlin. Last summer, several parcels sent as cargo air transport burned down at European airports. European security authorities have concluded in their investigation that a network of approximately ten people, including senior officials of Russian military intelligence, was involved in the operation.
This is stated in a joint investigation by WDR, NDR and Süddeutsche Zeitung.
Context
In July 2024, several cargo flights exploded or were intercepted in Europe: on July 19, a parcel caught fire in the British city of Birmingham. A similar incident occurred at Leipzig/Halle airport a day later. Later, in the same numbers, a fire broke out near the capital of Warsaw, in Poland.
Previously, parcels were sent from Vilnius Airport, Lithuania, using a Russian e-mail address at the DHL Packstation station. The parcels contained harmless items - massage pillows, sex toys and cosmetics. Despite routine checks, detonators and incendiary devices remained unnoticed.
Diversions, ‘disposable agents’ and Russian spies
According to the investigation, the operation involved a network of about ten people. the Russian GRU (the main department of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces) used ‘disposable agents’. The perpetrators have been detained; so far, it is known that they include a Lithuanian and several Ukrainians. Investigators believe that the figures were hired for execution via messengers for a small fee. The tasks were seemingly harmless, such as sending packages. One of the Ukrainians in question lives in a large city in eastern Germany.
Recruited "agents" receive from 100 to 10,000 euros for their missions, according to the investigation. Payment depends on whether the task is simply to transport the parcel or to arrange real arson. Payments are increasingly made through cryptocurrencies, which makes it difficult for investigators to track cash flows.
As Daniela Richterova, an intelligence researcher at King's College London, explains: "Breadcrumbs do not lead directly to Russian spies." The relevant measures allow Russia to operate on a much larger scale: "They can hire virtually anyone in the world," the expert says.
According to investigators, one of the organizers of the operation was GRU Colonel Denis Smolianinov. In December 2024, he was placed under European sanctions for recruiting "agents via the Internet to carry out sabotage on EU territory," German media write.
Let us remind you
Russians are using sex toys to carry out sabotage in Europe. European security chiefs released information about parcel fires in October, describing them as part of a "hybrid war" that Russia is waging to destabilize countries that support Ukraine.
Finland is strengthening security in the Baltic Sea due to an increase in suspicious incidents related to Russian sabotage.
Poland warns of increasing Russian attempts at sabotage, subversion and interference in European political processes