MOSCOW. Oct 9 (Interfax) - The reports about Russia's Military Intelligence Directorate (GRU) operating a special unit to destabilize Europe are not confirmed by any evidence, according to Franz Klintsevich, a member of the Federation Council defense and security committee.
"Of course there is no mention of facts which would confirm the existence of some secret GRU unit whose aim consists of destabilizing Europe. Only baseless allegations. In a word, a lie. I don't think that this little horror story meant for an ordinary Westerner will fulfill its role. Too sloppy. The job was done too hastily," Klintsevich told Interfax on Wednesday.
"What we have here is yet another special information operation aimed at demonizing Russia. One would think the time is gone when Europeans would fear bears supposedly walking about the streets of Russian towns. But no. They thought up something similar again," Klintsevich said.
The New York Times said that a clandestine GRU unit was behind the attempted coup in Montenegro, "the destabilization campaign" in Moldova, and the poisoning of Bulgarian businessman Emilian Gebrev and former GRU Col. Sergei Skripal in the UK.
The New York Times referred to intelligence officers of four Western nations in its report.
According to the report, the unit is headquartered at the 161st Special-Ops Training Center in eastern Moscow. Some of its officers have taken part in the hostilities in Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Ukraine.
The full picture of the unit's activity came into view after the poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter Julia in Salisbury, the UK, in 2018, the newspaper said.