Spies, oligarchs, cyber attacks: Why is little Montenegro so important to Russia
The Montenegrin police conducted a major operation in the territory of Podgorica, during which several people were arrested on suspicion of providing information to the Russian intelligence service. One of them is allegedly an employee of the state administration, and the entire action was carried out in cooperation with international intelligence services. This is not the first time that Montenegro has been targeted by the Russian secret services, and there are several reasons that explain the connection between these two countries.
As part of the action by members of the National Security Agency (ANB), the Special State Prosecutor's Office (SDT) and the Special Police Department (SPO), searches were carried out at several locations in Podgorica and the surrounding area, during which items "of interest to the investigation" were found. The arrest operation was carried out by members of the Anti-Crime Division.
Bearing in mind that this crime is under the responsibility of the National Security Agency, its members managed a complex operation on the territory of Podgorica.
During the operation, several persons suspected of having provided information to the Russian intelligence services were arrested. According to ANB data, one of the arrested persons has worked for the Russian service for more than a decade and is part of a wider group whose members are known to ANB.
In addition, he is allegedly an employee of the state administration. Today's action is just the beginning of the activity to discover collaborators of foreign intelligence services.
SDT spokesman, special prosecutor Vukas Radonjić said that at the request of the SDT, and by order of the High Court, the police searched the apartments and other premises of several citizens, "due to the grounds of suspicion that the crimes committed were the creation of a criminal organization and espionage".
Hybrid war
Technical Minister of Public Administration Maraš Dukaj said recently that Montenegro has been exposed to a new series of organized cyber attacks on the Government's IT infrastructure for a long time.
The primary target is the structure of state bodies, and Maraš points out that the department's experts, headed by him, took timely defensive measures.
"Although certain services are currently temporarily disabled for security reasons, the security of the orders of citizens and business entities and their data are not threatened in any way," Dukaj told the citizens.
These attacks, the Minister of Public Administration pointed out, are very similar to those from 2015 and 2016, and the Montenegrin authorities have informed international partners about it.
Due to frequent cyber attacks, public procurement in Montenegro suffered the most. State tenders have been stopped, thus hampering the work of certain institutions. However, the Ministry of Finance says that it is not yet possible to talk about financial losses.
Why Montenegro?
On April 8, Montenegro joined the countries that formally imposed sanctions on Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine. Just a day earlier, the Montenegrin Ministry of Foreign Affairs expelled four diplomats from the Russian Embassy in Montenegro.
With these decisions, Montenegro harmonized its policy with the positions of the European Union, but also provoked the anger of the Russian side.
Cooperation between the largest and smallest Slovenian states used to be "historically friendly", but in March 2022, Montenegro officially became an "enemy country of Russia".
In addition to the fact that Montenegro and Russia are united by the Orthodox faith, belonging to the Slavic peoples and once close political relations, economic ties have always been the strongest.
Oligarchs and Montenegro
Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, whose mansion in Washington was recently raided by the FBI, has been doing business in neighboring Montenegro for years.
In addition to the well-known close relationship with Vladimir Putin, Deripaska managed to attract world attention by participating in numerous affairs. This is how he first became famous due to his marriage to Polina Yumasheva, the granddaughter of former Russian President Boris Yeltsin and the daughter of Valentin Yumasheva, Yeltsin's son-in-law and close adviser.