(KYIV) – The Security Service of Ukraine has neutralised a large scale Russian military intelligence network of 14 people who were collecting data on Ukrainian air bases to enable missile strikes on F-16 and Mirage 2000 aircraft.
The SBU reported on Thursday that the group, recruited by the GRU, operated across various regions of Ukraine and gathered information on airfields used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
“The military counterintelligence of the Security Service of Ukraine, under the personal coordination of SBU Chief Oleksandr Poklad, neutralised a large scale agent network of Russian military intelligence, better known as the GRU, through which the enemy could launch missile strikes on the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ air bases. The investigation established that the suspects’ activities enabled the enemy to plan and carry out attacks on the airfields of Ukrainian forces equipped with F-16 and Mirage 2000 combat aircraft,” the SBU stated.
According to the case materials, the group recruited by the enemy consisted of 14 people who lived in various regions of Ukraine.
“Countering Russian special services seeking to destabilise the situation in Ukraine from within is one of the SBU’s top priorities today. We are actively strengthening the counterintelligence regime because we understand that the enemy continues to seek to damage our country’s defence potential and destabilise the Ukrainian rear, having no notable successes on the front. This operation is another example of our systematic work in this area. Everyone who agrees to work in the interests of Russia should realise: the SBU will definitely bring you to justice,” said SBU Chief Oleksandr Poklad.
The SBU established that the GRU initially recruited a Lviv resident who administered a Telegram channel about aviation. He came to the attention of Russian forces when he published photographs of Ukrainian Armed Forces combat aircraft in pro Kremlin chats.
To carry out the enemy’s assignment, the agent, without revealing the true purpose, involved 13 of his subscribers who had high quality photographic equipment and lived near the Defence Forces’ aviation infrastructure. They were instructed to photograph Ukrainian airfields, military aircraft, their crews and technical personnel, as well as record the time intervals between aircraft takeoffs and landings, allegedly for the Lviv blogger’s Telegram channel.
The suspects used professional cameras, concealing themselves in abandoned buildings or in open areas near air bases. They stored the photographs in an online storage facility, access to which they had previously received from the agent. He then passed the photographic materials to his handler from Russia, whose identity has already been established by the Security Service.
The agent also leaked schedules for the departures and landings of combat helicopters to the Russian forces. He received such intelligence from a commander of a Ukrainian Armed Forces aviation squadron, who provided the information on his own initiative.
During searches of the suspects’ residences, SBU officers found smartphones and digital photographic equipment containing evidence of work for the enemy, as well as photographs of Defence Forces aviation facilities.
In addition, SBU officers blocked four Telegram channels and 10 thematic groups where photographs and other data about Ukrainian Armed Forces aviation units were distributed.
“Investigators of the Security Service have now notified the detained agent, his accomplice and the serviceman of suspicion of committing crimes against the foundations of national security,” the statement said.
The investigation is ongoing to bring all those responsible to justice. The comprehensive measures were carried out by SBU military counterintelligence officers under the procedural guidance of the Lviv Regional Prosecutor’s Office.
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