Keep our news free from ads and paywalls by making a donation to support our work!
Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.
Poland’s defence ministry has confirmed that a “long-serving employee” was today detained on suspicion of working with foreign intelligence. Unofficial reports indicate that he collaborated with Russian and Belarusian intelligence.
Informujemy, że dzisiaj w godzinach porannych w siedzibie MON (al. Niepodległości, Warszawa) doszło do zatrzymania wieloletniego pracownika resortu obrony narodowej. Zatrzymany podejrzewany jest o współpracę z obcym wywiadem. Sprawę prowadzi Służba Kontrwywiadu Wojskowego, która… pic.twitter.com/n3J9h4bKtj
— Ministerstwo Obrony Narodowej 🇵🇱 (@MON_GOV_PL) February 3, 2026
News of the development was first reported on Tuesday morning by Onet, a leading news website, which said that, at 8 a.m., the Military Counterintelligence Service (SKW) had detained what they described as a “mid-level employee”.
Onet’s sources indicate that the suspect is a 60-year-old man who has been working in various positions at the ministry since the 1990s. He was detained after arriving for work today and was taken for immediate interrogation.
“The [security] services have been monitoring this man’s actions for many months,” said an unnamed source. “His actions were thoroughly documented and analysed. Therefore, the evidence gathered against him is very strong.”
Onet added that the SKW suspects the man of collaborating with Russian and Belarusian intelligence. Both countries have in recent years been actively engaged in so-called “hybrid warfare” against Poland, involving espionage, sabotage, cyberattacks and disinformation.
The defence ministry’s spokesman, Janusz Sejmej, confirmed to Onet that the arrest had taken place. Later on Tuesday, the ministry released a brief statement likewise noting that the “long-serving employee” had been detained.
“The detainee is suspected of collaborating with foreign intelligence,” they wrote. “The case is being investigated by the Military Counterintelligence Service, which cooperated with…the National Prosecutor’s Office and military police during the arrest. Prosecution proceedings are currently underway.”
Last year, Poland’s main opposition party, Law and Justice (PiS), submitted a resolution to parliament calling on the government to change the location of the Russian embassy in Warsaw.
They argued that the current site – which was established when Poland was under Moscow-backed communist rule – is too close to sensitive state offices, including the defence ministry, which is only around 500 metres away.
In 2022, Poland expelled 45 Russians who it said were “spies pretending to be diplomats”. At the same time, it detained an employee of Warsaw city hall accused of conducting espionage on behalf of Russia. He was indicted by prosecutors last year.
The opposition has submitted a resolution to parliament calling on the government to change the location of Russia's embassy.
It says the current site symbolises former Soviet dominance and its proximity to the defence ministry makes it a security threat https://t.co/OdEkNsdcJl
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) September 17, 2025
Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.
Main image credit: Gnesener1900/Wikimedia Commons (under CC BY-SA 3.0)
Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland. He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications, including Foreign Policy, POLITICO Europe, EUobserver and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.
