At least seven Russians — including the sons of close associates of President Vladimir Putin — have been arrested in recent weeks for flying drones or taking pictures near sensitive areas.
Norway and the rest of Europe are rushing to secure critical infrastructure after the Nord Stream gas pipeline was damaged. There have been multiple drone sightings in Norway’s offshore oil and gas fields and Norwegian airports in recent months.
A chain of events has Norway – and Europe – on edge. The oil and gas sector is at the heart of Norway’s economy. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the country has become an important supplier to Europe.
Norwegian newspaper Verdens Gang It was first reported on Thursday that the suspect attended a seminar on countering hybrid threats in Vilnius, Lithuania, from September 29 to 30.
The workshop is hosted by the European Hybrid Threat Network EU-HYBNET — The concept includes sabotage, disinformation, cyberattacks and other methods of fighting outside of traditional military conflict between nations.
Suspected spies were present at the event, Paivi Mattila, a professor at Finland’s Laurea University of Applied Sciences who coordinates the EU-HYBNET program, confirmed by phone. She said he failed security checks, but declined to comment further, citing the investigation.
An image shared on Twitter by the University of Mykolas Romeris shows Giammaria seated among the participants of the workshop organised by the Lithuanian Centre for Excellence in Training, Research and Education in Cybercrime. 29.
European Commission spokesman Peter Stano confirmed the funding but said EU institutions were not involved in the group’s day-to-day activities.
According to the conference’s brochure, the “training and exercise” event is designed to help participants understand “vulnerabilities that adversaries may exploit” and “delineate hybrid challenges in realistic near-term operational environments.”
Participants examined different scenarios, including a case of “flow shutting down after a gas pipeline exploded.” In that case study, “the initial findings supported the hypothesis that it may have been about the damage and not the accident” — an eerie echo of the recent damage to the North Stream pipeline.
Norwegian domestic security officials announced the arrest of the 37-year-old suspect earlier this week, saying he “poses a threat to the fundamental interests of the country”.
Hedwig Mo, deputy head of the Norwegian Police Security Service, told Norwegian media there were concerns that he “may have gained access to networks and information about politics in northern Norway”. Even if the information obtained by this person does not directly endanger Norway’s security, it could be misused by Russia, she said. Officials did not provide information on when he was arrested.
Details about the case are still emerging. Giammaria is conducting research at the Arctic University of Norway. If or October. On the 25th, he was listed as a researcher at a university think tank called “Gray Zones.” He is no longer listed on their website.
Before moving to Norway, he lived in Canada and attended Carleton University and Calgary University. While in Ottawa, he volunteered for a political campaign, according to Global News. He graduated from the University of Calgary Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies in 2018 with a master’s degree.
In 2019, he wrote an article for the Canadian Navy Review. The article, titled “Third Base: The Case of CFB Churchill,” advocates the establishment of a naval base in northern Canada.
The case comes months after another alleged Russian “illegal” was arrested in the Netherlands. In that case, an alleged Russian spy who claimed to be a Brazilian was seeking an internship at the International Criminal Court. He had previously studied in the United States.
“Outlaws” operate without diplomatic cover, building a cover story over time, usually many years. In a high-profile case in 2010, the United States arrested 10 Russian agents who had lived in the United States for years and reported secretly to Moscow’s foreign intelligence service.