Le Parisien: France arrests SOS Donbass activists over alleged Russian espionage

French security services have detained two activists from the SOS Donbass association in Paris, including a Russian national, on suspicion of spying for Russia.

A Russian citizen and a French citizen were arrested on November 17 by the General Directorate for Internal Security (DGSI) as part of an investigation launched by the Paris prosecutor’s office, Le Parisien reports, citing sources.

After 96 hours in custody, both were charged with “conspiracy with foreign nationals,” “engaging in activities involving the collection of information of interest to a foreign state,” and “conspiracy to commit a crime.”

According to intelligence services, members of SOS Donbass were conducting espionage under the guise of humanitarian work.

In addition to the two initial arrests, a third suspect, Ukrainian national Vyacheslav P., has also been indicted and detained, further deepening concerns about Russian interference in France and the increasingly aggressive methods used by Kremlin-linked intelligence networks.

The DGSI believes that SOS Donbass, which claimed to deliver humanitarian aid to the contested Donbass region, functioned as an influence tool serving Russian interests in France.

Its fundraising activities and aid convoys may have been used as cover for espionage operations and secret contacts with Russian officials.

Investigators suspect that Anna N. and Vincent P. were recruited by Russian intelligence during trips to the Donbass, where they allegedly met officials who introduced them to senior officers from a Russian intelligence service.

They are believed to have acted as Kremlin-backed agents, promoting pro-Putin narratives in France and gathering confidential information. Both deny the accusations, acknowledging only pro-Russian sympathies.

SOS Donbass is a French nonprofit association established in September 2022 by a group of French activists, ostensibly to provide humanitarian aid to civilians in the war-torn Donbas region.

The association declares its mission as helping victims of the Donbas conflict since 2014 by delivering food, hygiene products, medicines and other aid through local partner organisations, and by campaigning for diplomatic solutions and a cessation of arms deliveries to Ukraine.

Independent media and information-security researchers have characterised SOS Donbass as a pro-Russian NGO that, under the humanitarian-aid cover, spreads Kremlin-aligned narratives, opposes Western military support for Ukraine, and organises demonstrations and propaganda campaigns across France and Europe.

By Jeyhun Aghazada