Intelligence chiefs have warned that Vladimir Putin’s spy network is covertly establishing a web of “Trojan Horse” homes across Europe, exploiting legal grey areas within NATO to conduct a hybrid war involving cybercrimes, sabotage, and surveillance. Russian operatives are reportedly purchasing properties near sensitive military and civilian sites in multiple countries, potentially using them as hubs for drone launches, attacks, and storing weapons or sleeper agents. This campaign of sabotage, including arson attacks and assassination plots, aims to destabilize Western infrastructure while maintaining plausible deniability to avoid triggering NATO’s mutual defense clause.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Putin of effectively starting World War Three, rejecting Russian demands for Ukrainian territorial withdrawal, which he argues would weaken national unity and security. Putin has emphasized the continued development of Russia’s nuclear triad as a strategic priority, underscoring Moscow’s focus on maintaining global power balance through nuclear deterrence. European nations are urged to counter these covert threats, with Finland’s near-blanket ban on Russian property purchases cited as a model response.