It is important to separate the known facts from the accusations and suspicions voiced by Western officials.
There is no doubt that this year has seen a string of suspicious fires at cargo warehouses in the UK, Germany and Poland – suspicious enough to prompt a counter-terrorism police investigation.
There were other incidents across Europe the man was sentenced at the Old Bailey last month under the new National Security Act for setting fire to a Ukrainian business in Leyton, east London, in March.
In Germany, the head of domestic intelligence (BfV) said that it was only a lucky coincidence that the Leipzig device did not catch fire in the air.
The head of the BfV, Thomas Haldenwang, described the device that caught fire at the DHL logistics center at Leipzig-Halle Airport as a suspected sabotage by Russia.
Taken together, these developments are leading Western governments to conclude that there is a strong possibility that Russia’s military intelligence agency, the GRU, has launched a systematic campaign of anonymous covert attacks on countries that help Ukraine.
The package that caught fire in Leipzig is believed to have arrived from Lithuania and its onward flight was delayed.
The device that caught fire in Minvoort is believed to have come from Lithuania, where the head of the parliament’s national security and defense committee, Arvidas Potius, said it was part of an ongoing campaign of hybrid attacks aimed at “causing chaos, panic and distrust”.
DHL has increased security following recent cargo fires. “DHL Express has taken measures in all European countries to protect its network, employees and facilities, as well as its customers’ deliveries,” a spokeswoman said a few weeks ago.
The Polish government has already responded to the alleged Russian sabotage, when Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski announced the closure of the Russian consulate in Poznań and threatened to expel the Russian ambassador if he did not stop his attacks.
The Russian Foreign Ministry condemned the move as “a hostile step that will be met with a painful reaction.”
