Poland, Germany nab alleged anti-Ukraine spies

Woman photographs Poland's Rzeszów-Jasionka Airport

Polish prosecutors said the suspect agreed to give Russian spies security information about Rzeszów-Jasionka Airport

(Image credit: Damian Lemański / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

What happened

Poland said Thursday it arrested a Polish man who was collaborating with Russian military intelligence to aid in a plot to assassinate Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Hours earlier, Germany charged two Russian-German nationals with planning attacks at U.S. military facilities to sabotage aid to Ukraine.

Who said what

Polish prosecutors said the suspect, Pawel K, had agreed to give Russian spies security information about Rzeszów-Jasionka Airport, a military aid staging stronghold about 60 miles from Ukraine, to help "Russian special services" plan a "possible attack" on Zelenskyy's life. German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said security services prevented "possible explosive attacks" and thwarted "a particularly serious case of alleged spy activity for [Russian President Vladimir] Putin's criminal regime." Russia's Berlin embassy called the charge an "outright provocation."

The commentary

Zelenskyy is "known to have flown out of Rzeszów-Jasionka on foreign visits," and Poland arrested a group of foreign citizens last year for installing cameras outside the airport, among other Russian espionage, the BBC said.

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What next?

Pawel K. faces up to 8 years in prison if convicted.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.