European security services are battling a relentless, clandestine campaign of sabotage orchestrated by Russia, with a new investigation documenting 145 separate acts of 'disruption' across the continent since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The findings detail a 'hybrid war' ordered by the Kremlin, which has increased in both frequency and severity. From explosives on railways to warehouse arson and electronic attacks on aircraft, the campaign aims to sow chaos while Moscow denies any involvement.
A senior European intelligence official told the Associated Press that countering this threat is now a '24/7 operation between all the services'. The warning follows the new head of MI6 stating that the front line with Russia is 'everywhere'.
Arson, Explosives and Wagner-Linked Attacks
The sabotage tactics are brazen and diverse. In March 2024, a gang linked to the Russian mercenary Wagner Group set fire to a London warehouse in Leyton that was supplying aid to Ukraine. The arson risked the lives of 60 firefighters and caused an estimated £1 million in damage.
Earlier in January 2024, a Moldovan man, who had never before visited Estonia, carried out arson attacks on a supermarket and a Ukrainian restaurant in the country. In May 2024, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated an arson attack on a Warsaw shopping centre was 'quite likely' the work of Russian saboteurs.
Last autumn, UK counter-terrorism police probed whether Russian spies planted an explosive device on a cargo plane, sparking a fire at a Birmingham warehouse. A near-identical incident occurred at a DHL warehouse in Leipzig, Germany.
Keir Giles, a Russia expert at Chatham House, warned Metro: 'Now with these airline parcel plots, the willingness from Russia to cause mass casualties has returned. Europe is bearing the brunt of these attacks.'
Electronic Warfare and Cyber Onslaught
Beyond physical attacks, Russia is suspected of systematically targeting commercial aircraft. Between August 2023 and March 2024 alone, some 46,000 flights in the Baltic, Black Sea and eastern Mediterranean regions logged electronic interference issues affecting airlines including Ryanair, British Airways and EasyJet.
Keir Giles suggests this disruption of electronic systems is a way for Russia to practise for a potential conflict with NATO.
Simultaneously, cyber threats have surged. In early 2023, UK minister Oliver Dowden revealed the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) had issued an official threat notice, warning that Russian-aligned groups now have a motive to 'disrupt or destroy' UK critical national infrastructure.
'Russia is at War With Us – We Just Don't Know It'
Samantha de Bendern, an Associate Fellow at Chatham House, argues these acts of sabotage should be considered terrorism. 'Russia is at war with us. We just don't know it,' she told Metro.
She warns that Russia is counting on Western publics becoming desensitised, like 'the frog in boiling water', accepting disruptions as normal. De Bendern points to the use of Novichok in Salisbury and other hostile acts on British soil that 'hardly registered a blink'.
'I think, unfortunately, it’s going to take something catastrophic on NATO soil for us to realise,' she adds, stressing that if Ukraine falls, Western nations will be next in line.
The investigation paints a stark picture of an ongoing, multi-faceted shadow war, demanding constant vigilance from European security services as the Kremlin's campaign shows no sign of abating.
