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Warsaw plot foiled
Polish security services foiled a Russian plot to assassinate a U.S. citizen of Ukrainian origin in Warsaw, with Prime Minister Donald Tusk saying the case was the first time “someone on the order of Russia” sought to attack an American citizen on the territory of another NATO country.
“someone on the order of Russia”
Tusk said the suspect was detained on 7 August and that the operation involved U.S. services, while Tomasz Siemoniak confirmed the assassination “was to take place in Warsaw.”
The Washington Post reported that a Russian national working under orders of Russian intelligence was arrested in Warsaw, and that U.S. intelligence aided the effort, while officials described the target as a U.S. citizen of Ukrainian origin without releasing a name.
Euronews added that the verdict came later in a separate case, but it also tied the Warsaw detention to the Kremlin’s broader use of espionage and treason laws expanded since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Tusk and Siemoniak on motive
Tusk described the intended victim as “uncomfortable for the Putin regime,” and he said the operation was carried out in cooperation with U.S. services, while the suspect was detained on 7 August and held in custody for three months.
Kyiv Post quoted Tusk warning that “we must proceed from the assumption that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s regime will attempt to eliminate people who are inconvenient for various reasons, in various parts of the world,” linking the Warsaw plot to a broader hybrid campaign.
The Washington Post reported that Tusk said the Russian national was arrested Friday in Warsaw and that the U.S. intelligence aided the effort, while the Russian Embassy in Warsaw did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
Euronews reported that the FSB said Georgy Pirogov left Russia after the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, established contact with a representative of Polish military intelligence in Poland in April 2022, and was later tasked with collecting and passing classified information about Russian weapons used in the war.
Broader campaign and risk
The Guardian framed the Warsaw case as unprecedented, saying Tusk described it as the first time Russia sought to attack a U.S. citizen on NATO territory, while Reuters and other Western officials had previously warned Russia stepped up targeted killings after Vladimir Putin’s 2022 invasion.
“The AP has mapped about 200 acts of sabotage”
The Guardian also recalled that the AP mapped about 200 acts of sabotage, arson and other disruption across Europe since the start of the war, and it cited Putin’s denial to the AP in June that Russia was waging a sabotage campaign against Europe.
Euronews described how Russia expanded treason and espionage laws after launching the full-scale invasion in February 2022, saying the maximum sentence for treason rose from 20 to 25 years and that last year almost 500 people were convicted in Russia on espionage and treason charges.
In the Warsaw plot itself, Notes from Poland said the ABW and police detained the Russian citizen on 7 August and that the task was to “execute an American and Ukrainian citizen right here in Warsaw,” while it reported that the suspect was charged with planning a murder and accepting an order to carry out murder for material or personal benefit.