Germany arrests Ukrainian national suspected of spying for Russia
German federal prosecutors arrested a Ukrainian national, identified as Vadym Y., in Brandenburg on suspicion of gathering military-related intelligence for a Russian secret service since at least July 2025.
German federal prosecutors have arrested a Ukrainian national in the state of Brandenburg on suspicion of spying for Russia, a prosecutors’ statement said on Thursday.
The suspect, identified under German privacy rules as Vadym Y., had been in contact with a Russian secret service via an intermediary since at least July 2025, prosecutors said. He is accused of gathering military-related intelligence in Germany, including information on the production of armoured vehicles, ammunition and explosives, as well as personnel and installations involved in securing NATO’s eastern flank.
Prosecutors said some of the information was publicly available, while other details were solicited from individuals in the European defence industry. The Russian embassy in Berlin did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Thursday that the arrest did not surprise him and warned there would be more such cases. A day earlier, Merz had said Russian disinformation campaigns and hybrid operations posed the greatest threat to Germany’s security. Germany’s armed forces raised the threat level of Russian sabotage against troops and facilities to “significant” this week, Al Jazeera reported.
The suspect is due before an investigating judge at Germany’s Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe on Friday, where the arrest warrant will be formally presented and a decision taken on pre-trial detention.
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