Estonia accuses Russian intelligence of being behind a sabotage attack, but the Kremlin denies

On Tuesday, Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsakhkna accused Russian intelligence services of being behind an arson attack targeting the defense industry company Milrem Robotics in the capital, Tallinn, in August. The Kremlin rejected the accusations and stressed that they were “baseless.”

The Estonian Foreign Minister accused the Russian intelligence services of being behind an arson attack targeting the defense industries company Milrem Robotics in the capital, Tallinn, in August. He wrote on the “X” platform: “We can confirm that the arson attack (...) in Tallinn was an act of sabotage carried out on the orders of the Russian intelligence services.”

For his part, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte called for “calm” in the face of Russia’s “campaign of sabotage” in Europe, considering that it fails to undermine support for Ukraine.

“Russia continues its reckless campaign of hostilities against NATO member states,” Rutte told reporters. “It is trying to weaken our resolve and stop our support for Ukraine, but it is failing....”

He added: “It is failing on the battlefield in Ukraine, and it is failing to undermine our unity and support for Ukraine.”

European governments confirm that Moscow is intensifying its campaign of sabotage and interference against countries supporting Ukraine, at a time when the Kremlin forces are facing difficulties on the front, more than four years after the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022.

Rutte acknowledged that Russian activities “may leave an impact, and they do leave an impact sometimes, and this is clear.”

But he called on NATO countries to “remain calm and continue working and supporting Ukraine.”

He added: “We must not be naive (...) in dealing with Russia, but they know that we are stronger.”

For his part, Lithuanian Prime Minister Mindaugas Sienkevicius, who was speaking alongside Rutte, said that intelligence services had no evidence that Moscow was preparing to carry out a larger imminent move.

He added: “It is necessary to inform society of the existence of a threat when it exists, but it is not permissible to exaggerate and say that something will happen in the coming months or weeks.”

On the other hand, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, in response to a question from Agence France-Presse, that “these statements are baseless, lack deliberation and logic, and have no connection to reality, and therefore we cannot deal with them seriously, and we will not do so.”

The attack in Estonia came shortly after a drone loaded with explosives was found at an airport in Russia, in an incident that Berlin blamed on Moscow.

In turn, French President Emmanuel Macron denounced a dangerous attempt by Moscow to “escape forward.”

Macron expressed in a post on the “X” platform his “full” solidarity with Estonia, considering that the increase in attacks attributed to Moscow in European countries, after a drone attack on Leipzig Airport in Germany, “reflects a dangerous Russian approach characterized by escalation and escaping forward into a dead end that will only deepen its isolation.”

He added: "Russia must realize that it will not succeed in undermining our unity or our determination to continue supporting Ukraine."