A Russian soldier was arrested by Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) on charges of planning to bomb a naval vessel on behalf of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the FSB announced on Thursday.
According to the FSB, a servicemember of the Russian Navy was recruited by the Ukrainian special services to attack a ship of the Black Sea Fleet. The FSB seized two IEDs with a total mass of 1 kg of TNT equivalent from the servicemember.
The FSB added that the servicemember was suspected of transferring "information constituting a state secret" to Ukraine.
According to Interfax, the servicemember is facing a possible sentence of life in prison.
The Russian TASS news agency reported that a video from the FSB showed the servicemember confessing to being promised Ukrainian citizenship and money by the SBU in exchange for carrying out the attack.
FSB accuses foreign cargo ship of containing traces of explosives
Additionally, on Thursday, the FSB reported that it had found traces of explosives on a foreign dry cargo ship on its way through the Kerch Strait to the port of Rostov-on-Don to load grain crops.
The FSB stated that the ship had called at the Ukrainian seaport of Reni twice in June and July. The ship was banned from passing through the Kerch Strait.
Earlier this week, after Russia declined to extend the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the FSB blocked another foreign cargo ship from crossing the strait based on similar accusations.