UK special forces have been training Ukrainian saboteurs to commit acts of terrorism and sabotage targets on Russian territory, including nuclear power plants, the director of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) Aleksandr Bortnikov has claimed.

Speaking at a security meeting in Baku on Wednesday, the official stated that the FSB detained members of a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group in August who revealed that they had been trained by members of British special forces, who were also responsible for planning their operations.

“The group’s tasks included carrying out sabotage against military targets, oil, transport and critical infrastructure facilities, as well as nuclear energy, specifically the Smolensk and Kursk nuclear power plants,” Bortnikov said.

The FSB chief noted that similar attacks had previously also been attempted on the Leningrad and Kalinin nuclear power plants when over 20 explosive devices installed on power lines leading to the stations were neutralized as the result of anti-sabotage work.

However, according to Bortnikov, one such attack by Ukrainian saboteurs did require that the second block of the Kursk Nuclear power plant perform an emergency stop, adding that “such actions by the Ukrainian military intelligence and its British mentors can’t be classified as anything but nuclear terrorism.”

Read more

Germany preparing to send thousands of troops to Russian border state

“The question arises: does London realize the reckless nature of the actions of its intelligence services? And what, ultimately, do these madmen hope to achieve? After all, through their actions they are taking the terrorist threat to a higher level,” the FSB director said, suggesting that the international community must now develop a new approach to fighting terrorism, its ideological inspirers, sponsors and leaders.

During his speech, Bortnikov also noted that the West has turned Ukraine into a “platform for training terrorists and mercenaries.” He claimed that in the EU alone there are currently 17 military training camps that are operating under the patronage of NATO intelligence services and teaching fighters in the ways of modern warfare.

The FSB chief explained that this knowledge is subsequently utilized in post-Soviet nations and beyond. He pointed out that Western intelligence agencies and non-governmental organizations are actively enlisting “members of international terrorist organizations, Nazis and mercenaries trained in Afghanistan, the Middle East, Europe, and overseas” to aid Ukrainian armed groups in conducting acts of terrorism and sabotage within Russian territory.