Overview

• Prosecutors charged Ukrainian national Robert A., Russian citizen Arman S. and Armenian national Vardges I. with foreign agent activity and espionage.
• Investigators say the suspects tracked a man who fought for Ukraine’s armed forces to gather intelligence for a possible killing.
• Court documents indicate Vardges I. was directed by a Russian intelligence service and recruited the other two to assist.
• The plan unraveled when German police warned the target, preventing a June 2024 meeting at a café in central Frankfurt.
• The case highlights Berlin’s stepped-up counterintelligence actions against a broader surge of Russian espionage and hybrid warfare threats.