France detains four amid inquiry into suspected Russian spy network | Espionage News

The arrest of the suspected agents in Paris comes amid a wider surge of alleged Russian espionage in Europe.

French prosecutors say three people are being held in custody on suspicion of spying for Russia and promoting its wartime propaganda, while a fourth suspect is being held under close police surveillance.

Prosecutors said Wednesday that the suspects in custody included a 40-year-old Russian man who was filmed placing pro-Moscow posters on the iconic Arc de Triomphe in Paris; A 40-year-old Russian-born woman known to be the head of the French-Russian SOS Donbass group, and a 63-year-old man from the northern suburbs of Paris.

The fourth suspect, 58, was released from pre-trial detention but kept under close surveillance and ordered to report to police once a week.

The woman who leads SOS Donbass, which presents itself as a humanitarian group helping civilians in Ukraine’s eastern Donbass region, was being monitored by France’s domestic intelligence service since earlier this year, the Directorate General for Internal Security, known by the French-language acronym DGSI, said.

After finding “actions prejudicial to the fundamental interests of the nation”, the DGSI in March launched a judicial investigation into suspected crimes committed by the woman, including “collusion with a foreign power”, a charge punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

French counter-espionage officials believe the woman was trying to gather economic information from French company executives.

The arrests come as fears of Russian espionage rise across Europe, with many countries pointing the finger at Moscow’s spy services amid sabotage attacks during Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Last month, police in the United Kingdom arrested three men in their 40s under the 2023 National Security Act, accusing them of assisting Russia’s foreign intelligence service.

In a separate case, two young ringleaders of a group were given long sentences for carrying out arson attacks in London on behalf of the Wagner Group – a Russian state-funded mercenary force.

In March, three Bulgarian citizens were convicted in London of belonging to a Russian spy unit that conducted surveillance of a US military base for the Kremlin and individuals targeted by Moscow.

Tensions rose further last week when Britain’s Defense Secretary John Healey said the crew on board the Russian spy ship Yantar had aimed a laser at the pilots of a British surveillance plane sent to observe the ship in Scottish waters.

Healey condemned the move as “reckless and dangerous” and said Britain would respond to any territorial intrusion.

“We have military options ready in case Yantar changes course,” he said.

The Kremlin has rejected all allegations and accused London of blaming Russia whenever something “bad” happens in Britain.

Switzerland’s Federal Intelligence Service (FIS) also reports that the country has become a spying hotspot since Moscow’s attack on Ukraine. The FIS estimated in 2023 that at least a third of Russia’s 220 accredited officials in the country were potential spies.

A British patrol ship intercepted a Russian corvette and tanker in the English Channel, Britain’s Defense Ministry said on Sunday, noting that Russian naval activity near British waters has increased by 30 percent in two years.

NATO has also stepped up air patrols along its border with Ukraine after suspected incursions into Russian airspace and drone sightings in several member states, including Poland, where authorities last month arrested eight people suspected of spying and subversion on behalf of Russia.

In December 2024, Finland seized a ship belonging to Russia suspected of deliberately damaging an undersea cable between Finland and Estonia.