Russian intelligence services behind the fire of an Ikea store in Vilnius, says the Lithuanian prosecutor's office
The fire of an IKEA store in May 2024 in Vilnius, which had not made any victims, was organized by the Russian military intelligence services, said the Lithuanian prosecutor's office. “We consider this act as an act of terrorism with serious consequences”said to the press the prosecutor Arturas Urbelis, specifying that the center was burnt down using an explosive device with a timer.
Since the start of the Russian aggression against Ukraine in February 2022, Lithuania, a member of NATO and faithful ally of Ukraine, said that he is the target of attempts at sabotage orchestrated, according to her, by Russia. Two Ukrainian citizens are suspected in this case, one inmate in Lithuania and the other in Poland, he said. One of them had gone through Poland in spring 2024.
“More than one supermarket was burned, not just supermarkets”said Urbelis, asking about whether the case was linked to a fire in Warsaw in 2024, when a large hall with 1,400 small businesses, mainly detained by members of the Vietnamese community, was destroyed by a large fire. “It is obvious that the people we have identified, the authors and the intermediaries, are also linked to the criminal acts committed in Poland”said the Lithuanian prosecutor.
Commenting on these statements, Donald Tusk said they confirmed the Polish conclusions. “Dear allies, the investigation of the Lithuanian prosecutor's office confirmed our suspicions: fire managers of the Vilnius and Warsaw sales centers are the Russian secret services”wrote the Polish Prime Minister on the social network X. “Good to know before negotiations. This is the nature of this state ”he added, evoking possible talks on the ceasefire and peace in Ukraine.
Source: Lemonde