Russian investigators said Thursday they had arrested a French citizen suspected of gathering information about the Russian military’s activities.
The state investigative commission said the man is suspected of having “intentionally collected information in the field of military and military-technical activities of the Russian Federation over a period of several years.”
He added: “Such information, if obtained from foreign sources, can be used against state security. For these purposes, he repeatedly visited the territory of Russia, including the city of Moscow, where he had meetings with citizens of the Russian Federation “.
Investigators said the man, who was not identified, will soon be charged under Russian law with failure to register as a “foreign agent”, which carries a penalty of up to five years in prison.
The French Foreign Ministry in Paris had no immediate comment.
State news agency Tass identified the man as an employee of the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD), a Switzerland-based non-profit organization whose website says it has worked since 1999 to “help prevent , mitigate and resolve armed conflicts through dialogue and mediation” in countries such as Spain, the Philippines and Libya.
HD did not immediately respond to a request to confirm whether the arrested man was its employee. It is unclear whether the organization has operations or employees in Russia.
Source: Terra
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