German prosecutors announced Friday that they had arrested three men suspected of spying for a foreign intelligence service.
The three men were arrested in the western city of Frankfurt on Wednesday after allegedly trying "to gather information about a Ukrainian national," federal prosecutors said in a statement.
The men were only identified as Robert A. from Ukraine, Vardges I. from Armenia and Russian citizen Arman S.
Prosecutors did not specify which foreign secret service the men were allegedly working for and declined to comment further when contacted by AFP.
"The three suspects were acting on behalf of a foreign intelligence service in Germany," the statement said, adding that the trio had on June 19 "scouted a cafe in Frankfurt am Main where the target person was thought to be."
Germany has uncovered numerous espionage cases on its soil since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A former German intelligence officer is currently on trial in Berlin, accused of handing information to Moscow that showed Germany had access to details of Russian mercenary operations in Ukraine. He denies the charges.
Last month, a former German soldier was sentenced to three and a half years in jail for sharing secret military information with Russia in the wake of the outbreak of war in Ukraine.
… we have a small favor to ask. As you may have heard, The Moscow Times, an independent news source for over 30 years, has been unjustly branded as a "foreign agent" by the Russian government. This blatant attempt to silence our voice is a direct assault on the integrity of journalism and the values we hold dear.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. Our commitment to providing accurate and unbiased reporting on Russia remains unshaken. But we need your help to continue our critical mission.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and you can be confident that you're making a significant impact every month by supporting open, independent journalism. Thank you.
Remind me later.
