Gazeta Wyborcza: Russia plotted terror attacks in Poland, Lithuania, Germany

Russian military intelligence allegedly planned terrorist attacks in the European Union (EU), targeting Poland, Lithuania and Germany, with drones and improvised explosive devices, Warsaw-based Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza reports.

The newspaper, citing findings from Poland’s National Prosecutor’s Office and the Internal Security Agency, said Russian operatives recruited a 27-year-old Ukrainian citizen, identified as Vladyslav D., who lived in Katowice. 

Journalists reported that his likely full name is Vladyslav Derkavets, which also surfaced in a Bosnia-related court case that is linked to the Polish investigation. 

Investigators said Derkavets acted under the direction of a handler on Telegram who used the call sign “Voin,” or “Warrior.” He was instructed to purchase a shovel, dig up containers hidden in Lithuania, and transport them across borders.

Lithuanian counterintelligence discovered the containers in the containers in a Kaunus cemetery. The tin cans were tightly packed with explosives, each containing the equivalent of about 1.4 kilograms of TNT that would be powerful enough to destroy a passenger vehicle and cause serious injuries, experts said. 

According to prosecutors, Derkavets had smuggled part of the cache into Poland and allegedly left two containers near a junction on the A2 highway outside Zgierz. Polish security services inspected the site but found nothing. 

“We do not know what was in the missing cans. Therefore we cannot conclude that they were explosives as well, although that appears likely,” the journalists said.

The investigation also found that Derkavets later transported drone parts and a SIM card to Dusseldorf, Germany. The delivery coincided with Euro 2024 soccer matches that the city hosted.