Russian Sabotage Plot Targeting NATO Sites Fails After Romania Tracks Suspect for Months

Romania's intelligence service has prevented a sabotage operation coordinated by Russia, involving a Russian citizen who photographed military sites used by NATO allies and a Ukrainian Antonov cargo aircraft.

The operation was reported by the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) on its official website on September 8.

According to the SRI, the man had been under surveillance since February 2026 as part of an investigation into attempted acts of diversion. He documented photo and video footage of communications centers, national military bases used by NATO allies, headquarters of defense and public-order institutions, and critical infrastructure, the service stated.

An intermediary instructed him to film strategic military targets, including Ukrainian Antonov cargo aircraft present on Romanian territory, the SRI added.

The SRI noted that the tactics matched those of sabotage networks coordinated by Russian entities across European states, including cases the service disrupted in Romania in 2024 and 2025. The investigation also indicated that Russia continues to recruit people from vulnerable categories for such illegal activities, according to the service.

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The SRI conducted the operation together with the Romanian Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) prosecutor's office, the Interior Ministry's organized-crime directorate, the Defense Ministry's intelligence directorate, and external partner services. The measures taken with Romanian authorities and foreign partners prevented sabotage on national territory, the SRI confirmed.

The targeting of Antonov aircraft echoes a sabotage attempt in Germany, where a drone carrying a suspected explosive charge was found beside a Ukrainian An-124 at Leipzig/Halle Airport during the night of August 5.

Western intelligence assessments later linked the device to the Russian government. Leipzig/Halle has served as Antonov Airlines' primary European base since 2022 and regularly handles NATO military and logistics flights.

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