Three Ukrainians arrested over planned sabotage for Russia in Germany

Three Ukrainian nationals have been arrested in Germany and Switzerland on suspicion of planning arson and explosive attacks on railway freight transport in Germany on behalf of Russia, German prosecutors said on Wednesday.

The suspects are said to have told several persons allegedly commissioned by Russia that they were willing to carry out the acts of sabotage, the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office in Karlsruhe said.

The men were arrested at separate locations in the western German city of Cologne and the southern city of Konstanz as well as in Switzerland.

According to prosecutors, the Ukrainians were planning to "send parcels from Germany to recipients in Ukraine containing explosive or incendiary devices that would ignite during transport."

According to the investigation, Russian state actors could be behind the case.

The first of the three arrests was made in Cologne on May 9, with the second suspect taken into custody in Konstanz the following day.

Both men are in pre-trial detention.

The third suspect was arrested in the Swiss canton of Thurgau on Tuesday and will be brought before an investigative judge following his extradition to Germany, according to the statement.

The suspect arrested in Cologne posted two test parcels in the cities at the end of March which prosecutors said contained GPS trackers to help scout potential routes, among other things.

He was said to have been commissioned by one of the other two men, while the third person is said to have helped assemble the packages.

The two young men arrested in Germany were not working, according to the current state of the investigation.

Prosecutors believe the men were likely motivated by financial gains, but there have been indications that a pro-Russian mentality also played a role, including previous contacts inside Russia.

German intelligence services believe Russian actors are hiring people to carry out espionage and sabotage operations across the country, with the deployment of professional spies being made increasingly difficult due to sanctions and increased vigilance amid Moscow's war on Ukraine.

In October, German intelligence officials said an act of sabotage believed to be linked to Russia came close to causing a plane crash in Germany last year.

The incident in July saw a package catch fire at a DHL logistics centre in the eastern city of Leipzig, setting a cargo container alight.

In a separate case, three German-Russian nationals were charged with spying for Moscow in December.

The man at the centre of the indictment is said to have discussed sabotage operations on German soil with a Russian agent and agreed to carry out explosive and arson attacks on industrial sites and infrastructure used by the military.

According to prosecutors, this was an attempt to undermine the military aid provided by Germany to Ukraine.