Poland Thwarts Russian Plot to Assassinate US Citizen in Warsaw

Poland's Internal Security Agency and police thwarted a Russian assassination plot targeting an Ukrainian-American citizen in Warsaw.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced the arrest of a Russian man on Thursday, August 13, stating the suspect was recruited by Russian intelligence services. Authorities detained the individual on August 7. The targeted individual holds both Ukrainian and U.S. passports and was described by Tusk as inconvenient to the Putin regime. Tomasz Siemoniak, Poland's minister overseeing intelligence services, confirmed the operation involved cooperation with U.S. services.

Tusk characterized the incident as the first time Russia sought to attack an American citizen on the territory of another NATO country. He stated that the plot was prevented at the last minute thanks to the actions of the Internal Security Agency and the police. The identity of the intended victim has not been revealed.

Russia's embassy in Warsaw did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment regarding the allegations. Moscow has regularly dismissed accusations by European powers of attacks, saying the West is stoking anti-Russian paranoia. Tusk, however, stated that the Putin regime would attempt to eliminate inconvenient individuals in various locations globally. He referenced the June assassination of Robert Kuzovkov, an artist critical of President Vladimir Putin, in which Tusk previously said the killing reflected a political assassination.

In 2006, British authorities accused Russia of being behind the killing of former FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko in London. The U.K. also blames Russia for the attempted killing of former Russian military intelligence officer Sergei Skripal in Salisbury in 2018.