2024-04-19 14:24:57
A Polish man who worked as a double agent for Russia and offered to be an informant for Russian military authorities in a plot to assassinate Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been arrested, Polish authorities said Thursday.
The man, whose name is Pawel K., was in contact with Russians who are directly involved in the war in Ukraine, the spokeswoman for Poland’s chief prosecutor, Anna Adamiak, said.
Ukraine’s chief prosecutor Andriy Kostin was also part of the investigation and provided Polish prosecutors with evidence and information that led to the arrest of Pavel K. According to him, the arrested man contacted Russian commanders and told them he was ready to cooperate with Russian military intelligence .
Pavel K.’s tasks included providing the Russian government with security information at Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport. This is a small Polish airport near the border with Ukraine, which has become a center for international aid, arms supplies. It is also where high-ranking leaders such as Zelensky land and take off after the start of Russia’s war against Ukraine in 2022, Forbes writes.
This information was used, among other things, to help Russian special services plan a possible assassination attempt on Zelensky while he was in Poland.
Pavel K. was arrested on Wednesday and is currently in custody. If convicted, he could face up to eight years in prison.
Poland and Ukraine are close allies and have worked closely together since the beginning of Russia’s war against Ukraine. A Washington Post report last year found that 80 percent of the world’s military aid to Ukraine passes through Poland, with much of it arriving by air at Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport. The airport has also welcomed many world leaders at the height of the war, including President Joe Biden, as well as dozens of other presidents and prime ministers. Zelensky was in Poland in April 2023 on a fanfare-filled visit alongside Polish President Andrzej Duda.