Romanian authorities have said they uncovered a network coordinated by Russia that they believe set a fire at an industrial site near a state-owned weapons factory in the central city of Brasov. The blaze took place on September 14.
In a statement released on Monday, the Romanian Intelligence Service described the fire as part of a wider campaign of sabotage operations coordinated by Russia during its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The agency said the operations target arms manufacturers and other sites of military and industrial interest.
"These actions are intended to intimidate, undermine defence capabilities and weaken the contribution of the targeted states to European and regional security," the agency said. Russia had not immediately commented on the claim. Moscow has repeatedly denied similar accusations in the past.
The Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism, known as DIICOT, said three people were involved in the Brasov fire: two Belarusians and a Ukrainian, all residing in European Union countries. Two of them were tracked down and placed in custody in Germany while they were preparing to commit similar offenses, according to the directorate. The third suspect remains at large in Poland.
The intelligence service also explained how such networks operate. Recruits are often found on social media and are first offered money for a seemingly harmless task, such as observing or photographing certain targets. Over time, the agency said, the tasks become increasingly serious and may involve vandalism, arson or even murder.
Romania is a member of both the EU and NATO and shares a border of more than 600 kilometres with Ukraine. President Nicusor Dan, a centrist, has said his country is a target of a hybrid war waged by Russia to destabilise nations that support Kyiv. He has pointed to drone incursions into Romanian airspace, cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns and sabotage.
Foreign Minister Dan Neculaescu called the Brasov fire part of a broader campaign of sabotage across Europe aimed at military production. "Hybrid attacks will not hold us back from strengthening our resilience and defense," he wrote on X.
The accusation comes after a series of incidents at defence-related sites across the continent. In September, explosions and a fire hit an ammunition storage site in Bulgaria, weeks after a blaze at another munitions facility there. Both are operated by the Bulgarian arms maker EMCO, whose munitions are used in Ukraine. Also that month, firebombs were thrown near the offices of a defence company in Munich, and Romanian authorities said they had detained a Russian citizen accused of filming and photographing military sites to prepare for sabotage. In August, a blast struck an ammunition factory near Rome operated by the arms maker KNDS.
At sea, at least eight cargo ships have been hit off the coasts of Romania and Bulgaria over the past three weeks, with about 34 sailors reported dead or missing. President Dan called the attacks on ships in Romanian waters a new example of the tragic consequences of Russia's aggression against Ukraine. A year ago, Poland and Romania also detained eight people suspected of taking part in a Russian plot to send exploding parcels to Ukraine.