Russia urged France on Wednesday to launch Anna Novikova, a Russian-French nationwide detained final 12 months on suspicion of espionage.
Novikova, the founder of a humanitarian organisation which stated it offered help to individuals residing in Russian-controlled components of Ukraine, is one in all three individuals who the Paris prosecutor’s workplace stated in November had been suspected of spying on behalf of a international energy.
French prosecutors stated she was suspected of approaching executives of French corporations to acquire details about French financial pursuits.
Read extraRussian spy community exploits Ukrainian youngsters in Europe
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova instructed reporters that Novikova was being held on a false pretext in a case that exemplified the “spy mania sweeping across Europe”.
“We insist that the repression against individuals whose only crime is to express an opinion that differs from the official line in Paris must cease immediately,” Zakharova stated.
(FRANCE 24 and Reuters)
https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20260401-russia-demands-france-release-woman-arrested-for-suspected-espionage