Russian citizen arrested in Norway on suspicion of espionage
Norwegian authorities reported the arrest of a Russian citizen on suspicion of illegal intelligence activities. The Norwegian news agency NTB reported on September 23 that the man was detained at Gardermoen Airport near the capital of Oslo on September 21. The agency reports that the man, whose name is not being disclosed, was taken into custody after a hearing in the Oslo District Court on September 22.
He will be held for two weeks because of the evidence destruction risk, NTB cites Norwegian Security Service spokesman.
The detained individual is suspected of conducting illegal intelligence activities after he attended a digital technologies seminar in the Norwegian parliament.
Last December, the Kremlin stated that Russian authorities had arrested a Norwegian citizen on suspicion of espionage after he allegedly received secret documents from a Russian citizen, who was also arrested.
Russia has arrested several foreign citizens of neighboring countries, including Estonia, Lithuania and Ukraine, on charges of espionage. The tension has been especially aggravated after the annexation of the Ukrainian Crimea by Russia in 2014 and Russia's involvement in a war in the east of Ukraine.