"The methods used to recruit and task saboteurs have shifted from Cold War-era reliance on trained intelligence operatives to a model characterised by remote, freelance and highly deniable assignments: the 'gig-economy era' of Russian sabotage," the report - entitled "Responding to Russian Sabotage Financing" - said. "While individual incidents may appear low-level or opportunistic, collectively they suggest the emergence of a broader campaign designed to raise the cost of supporting Ukraine, test the red lines of NATO states and erode public trust in Western national security systems," it said. "Many of those detained on sabotage-related charges from 2023 to 2025 were Ukrainian nationals - a development interpreted not as evidence of Ukrainian coordination but as part of a deliberate Russian strategy to exploit the presence of Ukrainian migrants, with the aim of provoking public distrust and political tension," it said.
Author: Deborah Haynes
Published at: 2026-01-13 22:43:00
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