Poland: Defense Ministry Employee Arrested for Russian Espionage

A 60-year-old employee of Poland’s Ministry of Defense was arrested in Warsaw on suspicion of espionage for Russia, confirmed on February 3, 2026. According to Onet citing military sources, the suspect held administrative positions in the ministry’s strategic planning department since the 1990s. He was uncovered by Poland’s Military Counterintelligence Service and detained jointly by military police and prosecutors. This is one of the most serious espionage cases within the Polish Defense Ministry in years, with authorities warning further arrests are possible. Russia’s intelligence services actively target Poland—NATO’s eastern flank and a key logistics hub for military aid to Ukraine. Warsaw has accused Moscow of waging ‘hybrid warfare,’ including espionage, sabotage, drone incursions, and weaponized migration from Belarus. In a related case, a 50-year-old former Polish soldier was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison for spying on Zamosc Airport—a strategic site near Ukraine used for presidential travel and arms transfers—to assist a plot targeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.