Pole arrested over plot to assassinate Zelensky

POLISH police have arrested a man suspected of aiding a Russian plot to assassinate Volodymyr Zelensky, targeting an airport the Ukrainian leader uses for overseas travel.

Prosecutors said the Pole, identified as “Pawel K” under local privacy laws, had been tasked by Russian handlers with spying on security measures at Poland’s Rzeszow-Jasionka airport.

It is unclear whether the suspect passed on sensitive information about the facility, which Mr Zelensky has repeatedly used to travel to meet foreign leaders since Ukrainian airports closed after the Russian invasion in 2022. Prosecutors said the arrest was made based on intelligence provided by Ukraine.

Russia is suspected of directing a number of assassination plots against Mr Zelensky in the hope that his death would strike a blow to Kyiv’s morale.

Donald Tusk, the Polish president, said: “The would-be assassin of president Zelensky, a Pole acting in cooperation with the Russian intelligence agencies, was arrested two days ago.

“There will be no leniency for those who collaborate with the Russian intelligence services. We will eliminate any attempt to betray or destabilise,” he added. He had previously referred to the suspect as a “madman” in a statement on Thursday night.

The invasion of Ukraine has transformed Rzeszow’s airport from a sleepy airline backwater to a logistics hub for Western military support for Kyiv.

Guarded by Patriot missiles, it lies 70 kilometres from the border, meaning that equipment can be unloaded and in Ukraine within a matter of hours upon arrival.

Since war broke out in Ukraine, neighbouring Poland has found itself on the front line of Russian spying. Home to an expanding Nato force, the country is now locked in an escalating espionage war with the Russian intelligence services. Last month, the ABW, Poland’s internal security agency, raided properties as part of an investigation into an alleged Russian spy ring.