Headlines
Russia was behind attempted 2024 arson attack, Lithuania says
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on January 16, 2026
Last updated: January 16, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on January 16, 2026
Last updated: January 16, 2026
VILNIUS, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Russia's GRU military intelligence was responsible for an attempted arson attack in 2024 on a plant in Lithuania that supplies radio wave scanners to Ukraine's army, Lithuanian officials said on Friday.
Six nationals of Spain, Colombia, Cuba, Russia and Belarus were charged over the incident, and the group had also attempted similar attacks in Poland, Romania and the Czech Republic, police and prosecutors said.
"The crimes were coordinated, and orders were issued to the executors by a group of people living in Russia, who are connected with Russia's GRU," Deputy Chief Saulius Briginas of Lithuania's criminal police told reporters.
(Reporting by Andrius Sytas, editing by Terje Solsvik and Anna Ringstrom)
The GRU, or Main Intelligence Directorate, is the foreign military intelligence agency of the Russian Federation, responsible for intelligence and special operations.
Arson is the criminal act of deliberately setting fire to property, which can result in damage or destruction of buildings and other assets.
Military intelligence refers to the collection and analysis of information related to foreign militaries and potential threats to national security.
A criminal investigation is a process by which law enforcement agencies gather facts and evidence to determine whether a crime has occurred and to identify the responsible parties.
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