Poland arrests suspected foreign military intelligence officer in espionage probe

By Necva Tastan Sevinc

ISTANBUL (AA) - Polish authorities have arrested a man suspected of spying on Poland and its allies, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced on Friday.

The suspect, identified as a foreign military intelligence officer, was detained by Poland’s Internal Security Agency (ABW) earlier this week and placed in pre-trial detention.

“Sooner or later, we are going to get everyone who endangers the security of the Polish state,” Tusk said. “And probably sooner rather than later."

Tomasz Siemoniak, the government’s coordinator of special services, said the individual is a national of a former Soviet republic in Asia, and described him as “a career military intelligence officer who conducted espionage to compromise the security of the Republic of Poland and allied military structures.”

According to the National Public Prosecutor’s Office, the alleged spy operated under diplomatic cover and is accused of carrying out intelligence activities in Warsaw and the northern city of Bydgoszcz between March 15 and July 30. The suspect denies the charges.

If convicted, the man faces a prison sentence of five to 30 years.

Earlier, Tusk said 32 individuals had been detained for carrying out Kremlin-directed acts of violence and subversion. The suspects included nationals of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Colombia, and Poland.