Russian spies intensify efforts to acquire Western technology amid sanctions

STOCKHOLM : Russia’s intelligence services have stepped up aggressive efforts to acquire Western technology and defense secrets as international sanctions strain the country’s wartime economy, three senior European intelligence officials told The Associated Press. Officials say Moscow’s operatives are using fake companies, middlemen, cyber spies and hackers to obtain machinery, advanced machine tools, research and dual‑use technologies — some of which could be repurposed to attack critical infrastructure.

“They really know what they need,” said Christoffer Wedelin, deputy head of operations at the Swedish Security Service, noting Russian attempts to target Sweden’s defence industry and high‑end research, including systems linked to the Gripen fighter jet. He added Russian efforts also seek civilian camera and laser technology that could be integrated into weapons.
Juha Martelius, director of Finland’s Security and Intelligence Service, said Russia is pursuing technologies with long‑term strategic value: space systems, quantum capabilities, Arctic and marine tech. He said space technology, used for satellite imaging, communications and navigation, is in immediate demand. Russia is also seeking sanctioned computer components and software updates for machine tools.

Anne Keast‑Butler, director of Britain’s signals intelligence agency, warned Wednesday that Russia is “relentlessly targeting” the U.K. and European partners, stealing technology and plotting sabotage and assassination attempts.
Swedish authorities arrested two people in May on suspicion of breaching sanctions tied to a Turkish firm that shipped dozens of metalworking machine tools to Russia. European officials say such cases show how complex procurement schemes have become and warn companies to guard against becoming unwitting links in Russia’s war supply chain.

Wedelin said all of Russia’s security and intelligence services are involved in state efforts to acquire these technologies. He added Moscow has increased cyberattacks against European firms and infrastructure to gather information it could exploit when advantageous, pointing to last year’s attempted sabotage of a Swedish power plant. The incident, he said, marked a shift from reconnaissance to more direct, riskier operations — with Moscow showing less concern for attribution.
Estonia’s intelligence chief Kaupo Rosin and other officials link the escalation to mounting economic pressure. Four years of sanctions and the demands of the war in Ukraine have hampered Russia’s ability to import machinery, technology and research, strained key industries and pushed the country toward potential financial crisis.

Martelius estimated roughly one‑third of Russia’s GDP is now devoted to the war effort. Rosin said the state planned a budget deficit of 3.7 trillion rubles ($52.1 billion) for 2026 and had already reached about 3.4 trillion rubles by February. While higher oil prices since the Iran war in February and Western waivers have temporarily eased revenue pressures, Rosin warned that persistent Western pressure could still bring a financial crisis by year’s end.
Intelligence assessments, Rosin said, show growing pessimism within Russia and fading belief in “total victory” in Ukraine. Keast‑Butler said nearly 500,000 Russian soldiers have been killed since the 2022 invasion, a figure Moscow and Kyiv generally keep private. Despite bleak economic indicators and battlefield setbacks, European officials warned against assuming political change in Moscow. “It is very dangerous ... to start analyzing Russia as if it is some country like ours,” Martelius said. “It is not.”