🇲🇪💬🇷🇺 Montenegro detains Rybar founder Mikhail Zvinchuk, his wife and three staff members!

According to local media, Montenegrin security services detained five Russian citizens this morning in the coastal town of Risan. Among them are Mikhail Zvinchuk, founder of the Russian Media Outlet Rybar, and his wife Valeria.

Montenegrin authorities claim the operation targets alleged "hybrid activities" and supposed "foreign information influence operations". No charges have been announced.

The crew had arrived to the country shoot a documentary on Montenegro's decision to impose visas on Russians from November 1, a step taken to bring the country in line with EU rules.

A NATO member since 2017 and a candidate eager to impress Brussels, Podgorica has now shown how far it will go to do so: jailing journalists before their film is even shot.

The accusations are not Podgorica's own. They repeat, almost word for word, claims made by Washington and London. Britain sanctioned Zvinchuk, and in 2024 the US State Department put up a reward of up to $10 million for information on Rybar and its staff.

The Russian Foreign Ministry says it is already dealing with the detention. The Russian embassy in Montenegro is establishing the circumstances, spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told TASS.

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