Information
Cyber units from Ukraine’s SBU domestic security service on Thursday said in a statement they had detained an agent who was “spying for the enemy” in the Odesa region. The suspect was tasked with identifying and providing the aggressor with the coordinates of sites where toxic substances are stored, including pesticide depots. According to the SBU, Moscow’s forces had planned to carry out missile strikes and use Iranian-made kamikaze drones to achieve their objectives. The agent had also scouted possible bases and routes of movement of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.The suspect at the end of a multi-stage special operation. The enemy asset was a student at a university in Odesa who was contacted remotely by an officer of Russia’s FSB security service. The SBU has identified this officer. The agent used a popular messaging app and several SIM cards and mobile phones to communicate with his Russian employers. Ukrainian agents seized all the devices that he had used for “reconnaissance and sabotage activities against Ukraine.” The suspect has been served a notice of high treason committed under martial law and faces life imprisonment in proceedings overseen by the Prosecutor General’s office.
Source: Deutsche Welle
Assessment
The Ukrainian SBU has their work cut out for them; while this is a significant win, it is likely that Russia maintains a strong network of intelligence network in Ukraine. However, the heavy presence of Ukrainian counterintelligence is possibly limiting the agent’s effectiveness, meaning that while Russia has a network, it can only conduct low-level operations. Regardless, the longer this conflict progresses, the more opportunity Russia has to develop sources inside Odessa, Liviv and Keiv, providing them the ability to gather information on targets and locations.
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