The SBU said this in a statement seen by Ukrinform.
"The SBU's military counterintelligence, under the personal coordination of SBU chief Oleksandr Poklad, has neutralized a large-scale agent network of Russian military intelligence, better known as the GRU, through which the enemy could have carried out missile strikes on Ukrainian Armed Forces air bases," the statement said.
The investigation found that the suspects' activities enabled Russian forces to plan and conduct attacks on airfields hosting F-16 and Mirage 2000 aircraft.
According to the case materials, the Russian-recruited group consisted of 14 people living in different regions of Ukraine.
Investigators established that the Russian GRU initially recruited a resident of Lviv who administered a Telegram channel about aviation. He attracted the Russians' attention after posting photographs of Ukrainian Armed Forces fighter jets in pro-Kremlin chats.
To carry out the assignments, the agent recruited 13 of his subscribers "in the dark" – people who owned high-quality cameras and lived near the Ukrainian Defense Forces' aviation infrastructure. They were instructed to photograph Ukrainian airfields, military aircraft, their crews and technical personnel, as well as record the time intervals between aircraft takeoffs and landings, allegedly for the Lviv blogger's Telegram channel, the SBU said.
Read also: Russian agent accused of directing strikes on Kyiv arrestedThe suspects used professional cameras and concealed themselves in abandoned buildings or in open areas near air bases while taking the photographs.
The images were stored in an online repository to which the agent had provided them with access in advance. He then forwarded the photographic material to a Russian handler, whose identity has already been established by the SBU.
The agent also passed the Russians schedules for military helicopter takeoffs and landings. He obtained this intelligence from a Ukrainian Armed Forces aviation squadron commander who provided the information on his own initiative.
During searches of the suspects' homes, investigators found smartphones and digital photography equipment containing evidence of their work for Russia, as well as photographs of Ukrainian forces' aviation facilities.
In addition, SBU officers blocked four Telegram channels and ten thematic groups where photographs and other information about Ukrainian Armed Forces aviation units were being distributed.
Investigators served the detained agent, his accomplice and the military officer with notices of suspicion of crimes against the foundations of Ukraine's national security.
The investigation is ongoing to bring all those responsible to justice.
First photo: French Aid to Ukraine / X