The FSB and GRU are actively recruiting former PMC Wagner recruiters and propagandists to create a network of so-called “disposable agents” in EU countries.
According to the Financial Times, recruiters previously focused on recruiting fighters from Russian regions to fight in the war against Ukraine are now focusing on finding economically vulnerable Europeans. Their mission is to recruit individuals to carry out acts of sabotage, arson, reconnaissance of NATO facilities, and sabotage of critical infrastructure. Such agents are considered expendable: after completing their mission, they are often abandoned, and if they fail, they deny any connection to Russia.
European intelligence agencies have recorded a sharp increase in such operations from 2023–2024. In 2025, the number of incidents related to Russian sabotage reached record levels. Targets include railways, warehouses, communication cables, “shadow fleet” facilities, and military infrastructure. In some cases, the perpetrators were teenagers and low-income citizens recruited through Telegram and given small sums of cryptocurrency.
Analysts note that after Prigozhin’s mutiny in 2023 and the subsequent fragmentation of Wagner, its recruitment and communications infrastructure was not destroyed but rather came under more direct control of the GRU and FSB. This allowed Russia to maintain and even expand its capabilities for “shadow warfare” on NATO territory without using its own high-level personnel.
Kremlin officials traditionally deny involvement in such actions, calling the accusations “yet another Russophobic campaign.” Meanwhile, the EU and NATO are intensifying intelligence sharing on “hybrid threats” and developing countermeasures, including tightening controls on recruitment through social media and cryptocurrency transactions.