Czech Foreign Minister Believes Country's Special Services Destroyed SVR, GRU Cell

Czech Foreign Minister Believes Country's Special Services Destroyed SVR, GRU Cell

Czech First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Jan Hamacek believes that by expelling 18 Russian diplomats from the embassy in Prague, the Czech intelligence has eliminated a resident group of undercover officers of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) and the Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU).

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th April, 2021) Czech First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Jan Hamacek believes that by expelling 18 Russian diplomats from the embassy in Prague, the Czech intelligence has eliminated a resident group of undercover officers of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) and the Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU).

On Saturday, Prague declared 18 Russian diplomats personae non gratae on suspicion of espionage, related to the 2014 blasts at an ammunition depot in the Vrbetice town. The diplomats were given 48 hours to leave the country.

"Russia has expelled more [Czech] diplomats than we expelled [Russian] intelligence officers," Hamacek said at a televised briefing, adding "Russia's acute reaction shows the extent to which it was affected by the fact that the Czech security services destroyed an SVR and GRU resident group."

The Vrbetice explosions occurred on October 16 and December 3, 2014. The first blast left two Czech nationals killed, hitting a warehouse with 58 tonnes of ammunition inside. The second explosion took place in a different warehouse with some 98 tonnes of military materials inside. Both warehouses were owned by the Imex Group from Ostrava in the country's north-east.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said that the espionage allegations were groundless and absurd, particularly taking into account that the Czech authorities originally blamed the blasts on companies that owned the warehouses. Moscow retaliated by expelling 20 Czech diplomats, giving them until the end of Monday to leave Russia.