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Bulgarian Prosecutor’s Office accuses two Russian diplomats of spying

The Russians are alleged to have been involved in intelligence activity in Bulgaria starting from 2016

© REUTERS/Mike Segar, archive

SOFIA, September 23. /TASS/. The Bulgarian Prosecutor’s Office has accused two Russian diplomats of spying. As follows from a news release uploaded to the Prosecutor’s Office website on Wednesday, criminal proceedings were launched against two Russian citizens on charges of gathering information that constitutes a state secret.

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"The two persons were in touch with Bulgarian citizens who had access to information concerning the country’s military and industrial complex. In some cases, the Bulgarian citizens were promised or paid financial remunerations," the Prosecutor’s Office claims.

The Russians are alleged to have been involved in intelligence activity in Bulgaria starting from 2016. They reportedly gathered information about plans for upgrading the Bulgarian army and the technical readiness of military equipment.

The Bulgarian Prosecutor’s Office says that both Russians enjoy diplomatic immunity. When their status was established, the criminal case was suspended. Bulgaria’s Chief Prosecutor Ivan Geshev briefed his country’s foreign minister on the measures being taken and progress in the investigation.

So far TASS has obtained no comment from the Russian embassy in Sofia.

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