MOSCOW (AP) – Prosecutors asked a Russian court Monday to sentence a French national arrested on charges of illegally collecting information on military matters to three years and three months in prison.
Laurent Vinatier, who was arrested in Moscow in June, had previously pleaded guilty, setting the stage for a speedy trial without a detailed examination of the evidence.
Since Russia sent troops to Ukraine in February 2022, detentions on charges of espionage and sensitive data collection have become increasingly common in Russia.
Vinatier's arrest comes amid heightened tensions between Moscow and Paris following French President Emmanuel Macron's comments about the possible deployment of French troops to Ukraine.
Russian authorities accused Vinatier of failing to register as a “foreign agent” while gathering intelligence on Russia's “military and military-technical activities” that could compromise the country's security.
