Logo Polskiego Radia

Defence minister: alleged spies arrested on 'very serious' charges

PR dla Zagranicy
Nick Hodge 17.10.2014 09:30
Defence Minister Tomasz Siemoniak has praised Poland's Internal Security Agency (ABW) after a lawyer and a military officer were charged with spying for a foreign country on Thursday.

Minister
Minister of Defence Tomasz Siemoniak (2L) reviews troops on Thursday with his Swiss counterpart Ueli Maurer. Photo: PAP/Grzegorz Momot

“I rate the work of our security services very highly,” Siemoniak said.

Although it is understood that the arrests resulted from separate investigations, unofficially both men have been linked with Russian intelligence.

“This is a very serious matter,” said Maciej Karczynski, a spokesman for ABW, during an interview with the TVN24 news channel.

Karczynski said few details could be revealed at present, for security reasons.

“We have to remember that the other side is also watching, it is also listening. And who is that? I think you can probably guess which country.”

The lawyer, who reportedly has joint Polish-Russian citizenship, is understood to have worked in Warsaw, specialising in economic matters.

According to unofficial information obtained by TVN24, which has spoken with Waldemar Tyl,deputy head of the Appellate Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw, the lawyer is suspected of spying for Russia's Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU).

GRU is one of the five arms of Russia's intelligence service, and it is its largest foreign intelligence agency.

The military officer arrested on Wednesday worked for the Ministry of Defence, and he was detained at a Warsaw office belonging to the ministry on Wednesday.

Attorney General Andrzej Seremet has said that more informatiion about the investigations will be disclosed in a few days. (nh)

Source: PAP/TVN

Print
Copyright © Polskie Radio S.A About Us Contact Us