Estonia deported a Russian man after he was accused of planning to gather intelligence on behalf of Moscow, authorities in the Baltic country said Thursday.
Estonia’s Internal Security Service (ISS) said law enforcement detained a man identified as Andrei Zhuravlyov. He was allegedly supposed to be involved in preparations for an alleged “hybrid attack,” but it was not immediately clear whether he had committed any crime.
“Don’t take the bait and let us know if you have received a similar job offer from Russia,” the ISS said in a brief statement on X. It did not provide further details.
Public broadcaster ERR reported that Zhuravlyov held an Estonian residency permit but spent most of his time in Russia. Russia’s FSB security service allegedly recruited him to gather intelligence in northeastern Estonia near the border with Russia.
The Moscow Times could not confirm that report.
Last month, Estonia deported a Russian national named David Arutunyan after he was said to have posted a photo of himself wearing a Russian military uniform on social media. Arutunyan also held an Estonian residency permit.
Estonian authorities allege that Moscow is using Russians living in the Baltic country as part of “hybrid” operations aimed at undermining national security and sowing chaos.
In August, a woman holding both Russian and Estonian citizenship was sentenced to three years in prison after being found guilty of passing information to the FSB.
Another dual national, journalist Svetlana Burceva, was jailed for six years on treason accusations just months earlier. She was also alleged to have conspired with Russian security services.
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