Authorities in Montenegro have arrested 38 people, mostly Russian nationals, on suspicion of espionage, the Pobjeda newspaper reported yesterday, citing unnamed sources.

Earlier yesterday, Prime Minister Dritan Abajovic said in a live broadcast of a Cabinet meeting that an “international operation” with foreign partners and the state prosecutor’s office was underway to protect the country’s interests, but he did not elaborate.

Montenegro, a member of NATO and a candidate country for joining the European Union, participates in international sanctions against Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine. It has expelled Russian diplomats in the past.

Pobjeda reported that agents of Montenegro’s National Security Agency (ANB) and the Special State Prosecutor’s Office (SDT) arrested six Russian diplomats, 30 Russian nationals with temporary residence permits, and two Montenegrins suspected of espionage.

The Russian embassy did not immediately return Reuters calls seeking comment. ANB and SDT officials were not immediately available for comment.

In 2016, Montenegro accused Russian agents of involvement in a plot to bring the pro-Russian opposition to power, assassinate then-Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic and stop the former Yugoslav republic’s integration into NATO.

Moscow has repeatedly dismissed the accusations as absurd. Montenegro joined the Western military alliance in 2017.

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