The Romanian Information Service (SRI) has announced the exposure of a sabotage network that, according to the agency, operated under Russian coordination. The intelligence service claims the network is linked to the September fire in Brașov near a facility of the state defense concern Romarm, as well as to preparations for strikes against Ukrainian military training centers and other targets in the region.

Brașov Fire: Details of the Incident

On the evening of September 14, a fire broke out at the Carfil industrial site in Brașov, next to the CARFIL SA enterprise—a subsidiary of the Romarm concern. The fire engulfed a building of about 1,000 square meters housing auto repair shops, a technical inspection station, and a car wash. According to the SRI, this incident was one of the episodes involving the exposed network.

Criminal Case and List of Targets

The Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) has opened a criminal case against three foreigners residing in EU countries. According to the SRI, Russian coordinators designated targets for the network throughout the region: state and private arms enterprises, as well as other military and industrial facilities. This year in Romania, according to the same data, other sabotage attempts were also recorded—including against international military installations and Ukrainian military training centers. Intelligence characterizes the Brașov fire as part of a broader sabotage campaign that, it asserts, Russia is coordinating in Europe. The Romanian Ministry of Interior has reportedly stepped up security for critical infrastructure, defense plants, and major logistics warehouses.

Escalation: Drones Over the Black Sea and Attacks on Tankers

Pressure on Romania reportedly increased significantly in October. On October 17, Romanian F-16 fighter jets shot down two jet-powered strike drones that violated the country's airspace over the Black Sea approximately 120 km east of Zmiinyi (Snake) Island. Two days prior, on October 15, two chemical tankers caught fire in Romanian territorial waters following drone attacks; on the San Marino-flagged vessel Wine Trader, seven crew members went missing and five were rescued. On October 2, an object resembling a drone crashed near the village of Plauru in Tulcea County, sparking a fire.

Context: Sabotage Activity in Europe

According to The Wall Street Journal, Vladimir Putin ordered stepped-up sabotage activities against NATO countries; in August, a drone with explosives was reportedly discovered at Leipzig Airport near a Ukrainian An-124 aircraft. Romanian intelligence assesses these episodes as fitting into the overall pattern of the sabotage campaign in Europe.