Russia also uses sabotage to intimidate Ukrainians. Mostly minors are attracted to the actions on the Internet, and according to a certain scheme.
They burn cars and houses, usually minors - Ukrainians who are recruited on the Internet by agents of the Russian secret services. In recent months, the media in Ukraine have constantly reported on such cases, with the focus of the attacks mostly being on military vehicles and mobilization centers. According to data from the Ukrainian police, there were 128 cases of arson of military vehicles in the first half of the year alone, ARD writes.
As a rule, the Russian secret services are behind the actions, which also operate according to a certain scheme. The case of 18-year-old Ihor (name changed) is symptomatic, for example, the German public media reports. The boy set fire to a service center in his hometown, where citizens could apply for passports and social benefits.
The lure: quick money
"They told me I could earn at least $1,000 for 15-20 minutes of work," says Ihor. He came across the ad through a local news site. The connection was then established through a Telegram channel, and as soon as Ihor showed interest, a man called him "Ferrari".
He introduced himself as a Ukrainian and said he was a member of an illegal resistance movement. The movement's goal was to disrupt the work of mobilization centers, writes ARD.
This is a common scheme, journalist Valeria Yekhoshina told the German public media. She and her colleagues have investigated many acts of sabotage. According to her, Russian agents take advantage of discontent in Ukrainian society, for example, in connection with the mobilization of soldiers.
But the main motivation for young people who contact the Russian secret services is money, says Yekhoshina. For example, Ihor admits that "Ferrari" once spontaneously transferred money to him just to buy beer.
However, there is something else, notes ARD. Just after contacting the Russian secret services, Ihor found out that his mother was sick with cancer - so he agreed to attack a service center and be able to help his mother.
Why are minors being sought?
All the cases that Yekhoshina and her colleagues have investigated have always involved minors, the German public media writes. The youngest boy was only ten years old. The information about him comes from the prosecutor's office in Kharkiv.
As Yekhoshina says, minors are easier to influence. When one of the young men she spoke to changed his mind and refused to carry out an attack, his Russian contact threatened him. "We know where you live and where you go," they told him. And often the threat that parents will be informed about the communication so far is enough.
Divisiveness and propaganda
The direct effect of the attacks is limited, observers believe. Even a few hundred burning cars could not affect the morale of the Ukrainian army.
More important for the Russian secret services is the photographic material they receive from the youth. Burning soldiers' cars, burning mobilization centers - thanks to these shots, Russian propaganda films can create the impression that there is widespread resistance in Ukraine, that people no longer want to defend themselves against Russia, writes ARD.
"The idea is to further divide Ukrainian society," commented Yekhoshina. Russia then disseminates the propaganda films via social media.
The journalist's opinion, shared with the German public media, is that agents with the appropriate psychological training can cause great damage with little effort. She calls for more explanations in schools about Russian disinformation to protect young people from manipulation.