The article explores Russia’s strategy of recruiting Europeans to act as agents in hybrid warfare operations targeting Western democracies. These recruited actors serve as eyes and ears, gathering intelligence, spreading propaganda, and sometimes actively engaging in sabotage and disruptive activities. The recruitment operates through various channels, including formal and informal networks, often exploiting personal vulnerabilities or ideological sympathies. The article presents cases from different European countries illustrating how Russian intelligence and proxy groups embed operatives within societies to undermine political stability, security institutions, and trust in democratic processes. It highlights the covert, long-term nature of these hybrid tactics and stresses their growing threat in the current geopolitical climate, especially amid the Ukraine conflict.
Category: Intelligence & Espionage
Subcategory: Human Intelligence (HUMINT)
Incident Type: Recruitment of locals
Country: European Union
Source report: united24media.com/world/rus…
