Montenegrin police have carried out a large-scale raid on the territory of Podgorica, during which several people have been arrested on suspicion of leaking information to the Russian intelligence service. One of them is reportedly an official of the state administration, and the whole action was carried out in cooperation with international intelligence services. This is not the first time Montenegro has been targeted by Russian secret services, and there are several reasons that explain the connection between the two countries.
Within the action of 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 objects of “interest for investigation” were found. The arrest was carried out by members of the anti-crime division.
Bearing in mind that this is a criminal offense within the jurisdiction of the National Security Agency, its members also managed a complex operation in 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 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 associates of foreign intelligence services.
SDT spokesman, Special Prosecutor Vukas Radonjic, said that at the request of the SDT, and on the order of the higher court, the police carried out searches of apartments and other premises of several citizens, “on grounds of suspicion that the creation of a criminal organization and espionage were committed.”
Hybrid war
Technical Minister of Public Administration Maras 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 Maras points out that the experts of the department he heads have taken defensive measures in a timely manner.
“Although certain services are currently temporarily disabled for security reasons, the security of accounts of citizens and business entities and their data are not threatened in any way,” said Dukaj to the citizens.
These attacks, the minister of public administration pointed out, are much like those of 2015. and 2016. the Montenegrin authorities also informed international partners about this.
Public procurement in Montenegro suffered the most because of frequent cyber attacks. State tenders have been stopped, making the work of some institutions more difficult. The Ministry of Finance, however, said that the financial losses could not be discussed yet.
Why Montenegro
On April 8th Montenegro joined the countries that formally imposed sanctions on Russia over the invasion of Ukraine. Just a day earlier, the Montenegrin Foreign Ministry 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 state was once “historically friendly”, but Montenegro in March 2022 has officially become the “enemy country of Russia”.
Apart from the fact that Montenegro and Russia are connected by Orthodox faith, belonging to Slovenian peoples and once close political relations, economic ties have always been the strongest.
Oligarchs and Montenegro
Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, whose Washington mansion the FBI recently raided, has been doing business in neighbouring Montenegro for years.
In addition to his well-known close relationship with Vladimir Putin, Deripaska managed to attract world attention by participating in numerous affairs. He first became famous for his marriage to Polina Yumasheva, the granddaughter of former Russian President Boris Yeltsin and the daughter of Valentin Yumashev, Yeltsin’s son-in-law and close adviser.
Montenegro attracted Deripaska’s attention in the early 2000s. He founded the aluminum plant, which was responsible for the production of half of Montenegrin exports.
How rarely has he been able to resist the opportunity to interfere in political activity, since 2005. he supported the independence of Montenegro. As a way of helping Montenegrin authorities, he also offered his advisers, including Paul Manafort.
Thus, Montenegro became the key location of cooperation between Manafort and Deripaska
However, the love between Montenegro and Deripaska ended when Russian oligarch-owned companies launched arbitration proceedings against the state. They are seeking compensation worth hundreds of millions of euros over a failed investment in the aluminium plant. In three arbitral proceedings, the court ruled in favor of Montenegro, and Deripaska personally initiated the last proceedings before the the arbitration court in The Hague./Nova.rs
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