Romania says Russia-run sabotage network set fire near weapons factory

Romanian authorities say they have uncovered a network "coordinated" by Russia that they believe was responsible for a fire at an industrial site near a state-owned weapons factory in September.

Key points

• Foreign Minister Dan Neculaescu remarked the fire in Brasov was "part of a broader campaign of sabotage across Europe" targeting military production.
• Romania, a member of the EU and NATO, shares a border of more than 600km with Ukraine.
• Dan, the Romanian president, has called the attacks on ships in Romanian waters "a new example of the tragic consequences of Russia's aggression against Ukraine".
• A year ago, Poland and Romania additionally detained eight residents suspected of taking part in a Russian plot to send exploding parcels to Ukraine.
• In August, a blast struck an ammunition factory near Rome in Italy operated by the arms maker KNDS.

Romania's Intelligence Service remarked on Monday that the blaze in the central city of Brasov on September 14 was "part of a wider campaign of sabotage operations coordinated" by Russia against the backdrop of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Meanwhile, the agency remarked the operations were aimed at arms manufacturers and "other targets of military and industrial interest".

"These actions are intended to intimidate, undermine defence capabilities and weaken the contribution of the targeted states to European and regional security, " it remarked in an official note.

There was no immediate comment from Russia on Romania's claim. Moscow has previously repeatedly denied such accusations.

Romania's Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism, known as DIICOT, remarked three residents had been involved in the Brasov fire – two Belarusians and a Ukrainian, all living in European Union countries.

Two were "tracked down and remanded in custody in Germany while they were preparing to commit similar offenses", the directorate remarked. The third remains at sizeable in Poland.

According to Romania's Intelligence Service, recruits for such networks are often discovered on social media and are first offered capital "for a seemingly harmless task", such as "observing or photographing certain targets".

Over time, "the tasks become increasingly serious, potentially involving acts of vandalism, arson or even murder", it remarked.

Its centrist president, Nicusor Dan, has remarked the country is a target of a hybrid war that Russia is waging to destabilise nations backing Kyiv, citing drone incursions into Romanian airspace, cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns and sabotage.

"Hybrid attacks will not hold us back from strengthening our resilience and defense, " he wrote on X.

Notably, the accusation follows a string of incidents at defence sites throughout Europe in recent weeks.

In September, explosions and a fire erupted at an ammunition storage site in Bulgaria, weeks after a blaze at another munitions facility in the country. Both sites are operated by the Bulgarian arms maker EMCO, whose munitions are applied in Ukraine.

That same month, firebombs were thrown near the offices of a defence firm in Munich, and Romanian authorities stated they had detained a Russian citizen accused of filming and photographing military sites in preparation for sabotage.

At sea, at least eight cargo ships have been hit off the coasts of Romania and Bulgaria over the past three weeks, and regarding 34 sailors have been noted dead or missing.

In practice, a year ago, Poland and Romania additionally detained eight residents suspected of taking part in a Russian plot to send exploding parcels to Ukraine.

Taken together, the developments around romania says Russia-run sabotage network set fire near weapons factory point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.