“Russia is intensifying its hybrid attacks, aimed at undermining the Netherlands and its European allies, the Dutch intelligence and military security agency (MIVD) announced.
Last year, the MIVD discovered a Russian group of hackers who carried out a cyber sabotage attack against the digital control system of a public institution in the Netherlands. This was the first act of sabotage for the Dutch state and did not result in any damages.
“The Russian threat against Europe is not decreasing, but increasing, and this could continue even after a possible end to the war in Ukraine,” stated the director of the Dutch intelligence and military security agency, Peter Reesink, quoted in a press release from the Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands.
Reesink affirms that the speed at which NATO is building its military capabilities is much slower than Russia’s, and this is partly due to Moscow’s switch to a war economy.
In recent years, the MIVD has warned that several Russian entities are mapping out the infrastructure in the North Sea for the purpose of espionage and sabotage, targeting internet cables, water, and energy. According to experts, there are risks of significant damages and disruptions in the Netherlands, throughout Europe, and in the rest of the world.”