Putin Directly Ordered a Stepped-Up Sabotage Campaign Against NATO Countries This Year: Report
Western officials say the campaign aims to disrupt Europe and bolster anti-Ukraine politics as investigators trace a Moscow-linked network across the continent.
- Russian leader Vladimir Putin has ordered an escalation of sabotage operations against NATO countries, according to The Wall Street Journal. Intelligence officials suspect an August 5 incident in Leipzig, Germany, served as a test for this broader campaign.
- The Kremlin's decision reportedly follows Russia's limited battlefield gains in Ukraine and Kyiv's refusal to accept Moscow's terms for ending the war. This escalates a broader hybrid campaign against European countries already including cyberattacks and arson.
- Investigators uncovered a Moscow-linked network allegedly coordinated by former Russian serviceman Oleg Levushkin, who used Serbia as a transit point. Serbian prosecutors announced the arrests of seven people suspected of involvement in the group directed by Levushkin.
- Western security services identified safe houses and weapons caches in several European cities, uncovering a covert network moving drones and explosives. An informal contact in Moscow warned that similar operations were likely to follow the Leipzig incident.
- Future sabotage aims to destabilize European societies and strengthen political movements opposed to continued military support for Ukraine. This strategy intends to cause physical disruption and trigger a new wave of hybrid attacks across Europe.
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The German army confirms that the threat posed by Russian sabotage has reached a significant level. An investigation by The Wall Street Journal claims that Vladimir Putin would have ordered the escalation of clandestine operations against NATO states.
Leipzig Was Only the Beginning—Putin Reportedly Orders New Sabotage Campaign Against NATO
Russian leader Vladimir Putin has ordered an escalation of sabotage operations against NATO countries, potentially setting the stage for a new wave of hybrid attacks across Europe, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on October 20, citing three European officials familiar with US intelligence.
The Wall Street Journal, with reference to intelligence sources, says that Vladimir Putin has commissioned sabotage operations against NATO countries, one of the first goals of the campaign being called Leipzig Airport.
New hybrid attacks like Leipzig are likely.
A Kremlin representative has warned a German government official that the attempted sabotage of Leipzig airport will not be Moscow’s last target, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing its own sources. The Russian official’s name was not disclosed. The contact was made after German authorities uncovered an attempted attack on Leipzig/Halle airport. In August, a drone with an explosive device was found near a Ukrainian Antonov An-124 transport …
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- 50% of the sources lean Left
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