2 minutes agoRussia's plot of European assassinations uncovered against Ukraine's supporters, an official says
Periskopi(2 years ago)
(2 years ago)Western intelligence agencies have uncovered Russian plots to commit murder, arson and other sabotages in Europe against companies and people who support the Ukrainian Army, a Western government official said. Russia has sometimes recruited ordinary criminals in foreign countries to carry out the attacks, said the official, who spoke [...]
Western intelligence agencies have uncovered Russian plots to commit murder, arson and other sabotages in Europe against companies and people who support the Ukrainian Army, a Western government official said.
Russia has sometimes recruited ordinary criminals in foreign countries to carry out the attacks, said the official, who spoke on anonymous terms, reports the Associated Press.
A major plot, which was discovered late, targeted Armin Papperger, chief executive of the defence company in Germany, Rheinmetall, the official said.
He did not elaborate on other plots, which for the first time reported CNN.
CNN reported that the United States had announced Germany's plot, enabling security agencies to protect Papperger and thus fail to plot against him.
Rheinmetall is the major supplier of military technology and artillery missiles in Ukraine, which is struggling to repel Russian forces. This company opened an facility last month for self- maintenance and repair in western Ukraine and aims to begin production within Ukraine.
US National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson declined to comment on the alleged plot to kill Paperger, but said Russia's actions cannot influence Allies' support for Ukraine.
“We have been clear that Russia's actions would not deter allies from continuing support for Ukraine”, she said.
Germany's Interior Ministry cannot comment “on individual threats cases”, said the ministry's spokesman, Maximian Kalll, but added that “we take very seriously the apparent increased threat of Russian aggression”.
“We know that the regime of [Russian president Vladimir] Putin wants, above all, to undermine our support for Ukraine, which is being defended against the Russian aggression war, but the German government will not fear”, he said.
European officials, gathered at the NATO summit in Washington this week, spoke of meeting with the escalation of attacks <x0hibride”, which they blame Russia and its allies.
In April, German investigators arrested two Russian-German men under suspicion of spying, one of whom was accused of agreeing to carry out attacks on possible targets, including American military objects, in hopes of affecting Ukraine's aid sabotage.
Germany has become the second largest arms supplier in Ukraine after the United States, since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed reports of the plot to kill Rapperger. /rel
