FSB operation targets extensive network and illegal arms workshops in Russia

MOSCOW, September 14. /TASS/. An extensive network operates in Russia that seeks to damage national security, Sergey Rats, an expert and historian studying the history of intelligence agencies, said in a video released by the Federal Security Service (FSB).

"The scale of operations carried out by our law enforcement agencies makes it clear that a large, extensive network exists in Russia that conducts regular activities aimed at harming our national security. Last year alone, 111 individuals were identified and detained who had tried to carry out acts of terrorism," he specified.

According to the expert, this shows that the enemy acts in a systemic and very active manner, depending on those who do not fully realize what they are doing.

The FSB said earlier that its officers, together with personnel from the Interior Ministry and the National Guard, had carried out operations in 43 Russian regions, identifying 111 illegal arms manufacturers, halting the activities of 37 clandestine workshops and seizing almost 300 weapons.

"Arms trafficking in Russia takes place on three levels. In particular, 297 firearms have been seized recently, as well as 323 grenades and 82 kilograms of explosives. This indicates that today, weapons have become a kind of commodity or currency that our opponents actively use. The third level is the most dangerous one, as every seized gun suggests there are dozens of others that are yet to be found," Rats pointed out.

He added that only close cooperation between law enforcement agencies made it possible to create a system to expose and halt the activities of clandestine workshops and Western intelligence agents in Russia.