Hybrid warfare escalates: NATO faces bold Russian sabotage

Russia is conducting "bold" sabotage against NATO member states, emphasizes CNN. For example, the American television channel cites the fire in the hall on Marywilska Street in Warsaw. Hybrid warfare has been an "unprecedented escalation" in the last six months.

A senior NATO official confessed in an interview with CNN that for the past six months, the Kremlin has been conducting a "bold" operation against Alliance countries. This includes setting fire to warehouses storing weapons for Ukraine or installing surveillance to monitor Ukrainian military training. This list also includes vandalism of official cars and a failed bombing.

According to information from CNN, Russian services are hiring amateurs for an increasing number of tasks, such as arson. In the event of the perpetrator being caught, the Kremlin can deny any connection to the detained individual.

Russia is trying to intimidate our allies, the anonymous NATO official assessed. The hybrid warfare conducted and intensified by Moscow is one of the topics on the agenda of the North Atlantic Alliance summit in Washington at 3:00 PM ET.

Analysts refer to Russia's actions as a "shadow war." One element of this was the fire at the hall on Marywilska Street in Warsaw, which occurred in the first half of May. The centre housed nearly 1,400 stores, including those run by Vietnamese businesspeople. In total, six commercial halls in the shopping centre were burned down.

- We are checking leads that are quite likely, said Prime Minister Donald Tusk a week after the fire, that Russian services had something to do with the high-profile fire on Marywilska Street and the investigation on this matter is ongoing.

CNN presents the story of Maksym L., a 24-year-old Ukrainian who carried out sabotage in Poland on behalf of Russian agencies. Maksym told CNN that he painted anti-war graffiti across Poland for 7 dollars. His handler was a Russian named "Andrzej," who contacted him via Telegram in February 2023.

Maksym explained to the American station that he fled Ukraine due to poverty and hopelessness. He said it was "easy money" that he "really needed."

- That country never did anything for me - Maksym said about Ukraine. He added that being born in a certain country is not a sufficient reason to go to war.

Graffiti was just the beginning. Next, the Ukrainian installed surveillance along railway tracks in Medyka, through which medical and military aid was delivered to Ukraine. Maksym did not believe such actions "could cause any harm." He also set fire to the fence of a Ukrainian transport company operating in eastern Poland.

It was only later that Maksym realized that "Andrzej" was actually a Russian spy. Andrzej instructed him to install a camera in front of a military base where the Ukrainian army was being trained.

- It made me feel uncomfortable, and I decided to leave - he said.

Maksym L. was arrested before he could leave. Polish services detained a total of 15 people. Maksym was sentenced to six years in prison for espionage. "This is the largest known Russian espionage operation in Poland in recent times," according to CNN. The station adds that this "worries" Warsaw.

An anonymous NATO official, with whom CNN journalists spoke, assessed that the Russians are playing a "dangerous game" throughout Europe. In his opinion, Moscow believes such actions, such as setting fire to halls, cannot trigger Article 5 of NATO, which assumes that an attack on one member country of the Alliance is an attack on all NATO members.

Determining the boundary is a dangerous calculation - the official assessed.

CNN sources say that some Russian spies make it to the West straight from war-torn Ukraine. They have more experience and can "brutally" pursue their tasks just to achieve the desired results.