Montenegro Expelled Three Russians With Suspicious Equipment. Pressure Mounts on NATO's Periphery Ahead of Ankara Summit

Montenegrin authorities on Saturday expelled three Russian citizens, in whom border police found a large quantity of sophisticated digital equipment without documentation of its origin or purpose. The incident did not remain isolated: that same week the Serbian army tested Chinese guided bombs, US intelligence services reportedly warned Poland of a possible Russian "provocation" according to media reports, and Russia and China announced a joint naval exercise. As NATO leaders head to the summit in Ankara, signals of great-power pressure are mounting on both the southern and eastern periphery of the Alliance.

🔴 Latest developments (July 9)

• 09.07.Italy expelled two military attachés from the Russian embassy for espionage, Foreign Minister Tajani speaks of "unacceptable interference," the agents must leave Rome within three days. Russian ambassador Paramonov responded that "Italy does not have leaders like Putin and Lavrov." ANSA ↗
• 09.07.A married couple was convicted in Poland for spying for Russia. The court disclosed what information they were sending to Moscow. HotNews ↗

Montenegro: spies without documents

Montenegro's Ministry of Interior on Saturday ordered the expulsion of three Russian citizens aged 26 to 38. Border police found on them a large quantity of sophisticated digital devices and equipment, for which the trio could not produce documentation of origin nor explain their purpose. N1 ↗ Večernji list ↗

The decision was issued by inspectors for foreigners at the prosecutor's office in Pljevlja, and the case was handed over for further investigation. The Croatian portal 24sata described the equipment as "devices like from James Bond movies." 24sata ↗

Montenegro has been a member of NATO since 2017 and is a candidate for accession to the European Union. Russia has long considered it a sensitive spot on the Adriatic — in 2016 the prosecutor's office there prosecuted an alleged coup attempt, in which it also charged two Russians linked to military intelligence, though the protracted judicial saga ended in 2024 with the acquittal of all defendants.

Serbia arms itself with Chinese bombs

While Podgorica expels Russians, neighboring Serbia is strengthening its own arsenal from China. The Serbian air force this week tested Chinese LS-6 guided glide bombs weighing 500 kilograms, which combine inertial and satellite guidance and have a stated range of up to 80 kilometers. They were dropped from MiG-29 fighter jets. Klix.ba ↗

According to the portal Klix.ba, citing specialized media, Serbia also obtained CM-400AK ballistic missiles from China with a range of 200 to 400 kilometers, nicknamed the "aircraft carrier killer." Until now they have been operated mainly by Pakistan among foreign militaries.

Serbia is the only Western Balkans country that refuses to join the EU sanctions against Russia, and President Aleksandar Vučić has long balanced between Moscow, Beijing, and Brussels. Chinese armament is thus bringing a second major player into the region and altering the local military balance.

Eastern flank: Washington warns Warsaw

Tension is not confined to the Balkans alone. According to reports by the Telegraph and the Polish portal Onet, US intelligence services warned Warsaw that Moscow is considering an armed "provocation" in Poland to test NATO's resolve to defend its members and force the West to halt aid to Ukraine. TVP World ↗ Radio Sarajevo ↗

Among the scenarios considered, the reports cite a drone attack on critical infrastructure, a simulation of a massive air strike, or a hybrid incident on the border that could also involve Belarusian soldiers. Prime Minister Donald Tusk declared that Poland is preparing "very intensively" for "various" scenarios and that the coming months could be "critical." Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski stated that testing the Alliance's unity would be a "serious act of recklessness" on Putin's part. This is so far an intelligence assessment, not a confirmed Russian intention — the Kremlin rejects such claims.

The Moscow-Beijing axis at sea

The whole mosaic is framed by deepening military cooperation between Russia and China. Both powers announced a joint naval exercise, "Joint Sea-2026," in the Yellow Sea near the port of Qingdao, scheduled to take place from July 6 to 13. Al Jazeera ↗ n-tv ↗

Russia is sending the cruiser Varyag, the corvette Rezkiy, and the submarine Ufa; China is sending destroyers and a frigate. The program includes reconnaissance, air and missile defense, and strikes on surface targets, and the exercise is to be followed by a joint patrol in the Pacific. It is precisely this axis that lends the pressure on Europe's periphery its geopolitical weight.

Limits of this view

We have combined four events into a single picture, but this is not proof of a coordinated campaign under a single command — the grouping is analytical, not a claim of central direction. Serbia's Chinese armament is primarily a Chinese export and Vučić's balancing act, not a Russian operation — the great-power game in the Balkans has two players. The warning to Poland is an intelligence assessment relayed by media citing anonymous sources, not a confirmed Russian intention. And in the Montenegrin case, we are so far relying on regional sources and the Interior Ministry's statement — Western agencies have not independently confirmed the details.

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