European operation identifies alleged Belarusian spy ring

A joint operation between several central European countries has identified an alleged Belarusian spy ring that reportedly included a former deputy head of Moldovan intelligence.

- Shaun Walker

A statement from Eurojust, the European Union's criminal justice coordination body, said it had worked with Romanian, Czech and Hungarian authorities to "capture an individual investigated for the crime of treason by way of transmitting state secrets". The Czech Republic expelled a Belarusian diplomat over the affair, as did Moldova.

Eurojust did not identify the main suspect but the Hungarian news outlet Telex named him as Alexandru Balan, a former deputy head of the Moldovan intelligence service and for a time its liaison in Kyiv. A Moldovan official confirmed that Balan was the arrested man.

Eurojust alleged the suspect had two meetings in Budapest in 2024 and 2025 with officers from the KGB, the Belarusian intelligence service, where he received money and instructions. "The meetings endangered Romania's national security," said the body.