Russian Embassy network in Italy may have recruited saboteurs across Europe

Journalist Massimiliano Coccia investigated the presence of Russian security and intelligence personnel at the embassy. His reporting indicates that Russian military intelligence connections may extend as far as the Vatican.

Italy expelled Ivan Gorbachev and Mikhail Astakhov on July 9. They served as the Russian Embassy’s naval attache and deputy naval attache, respectively. An investigation by Rome prosecutors led to the arrest of two former Italian intelligence officers accused of passing confidential information to Russia. The Italian government decided to expel Gorbachev and Astakhov based on material gathered by intelligence services.

Coccia’s investigation also names Igor Anikiev and Igor Ovechkin, Russian Embassy advisers believed to have ties to Russia’s FSB. The two may have gathered information on Italian infrastructure, focusing on military and technological systems linked to NATO.

The alleged activity may not have been limited to the military sphere. Anton Dyomin and Dmitry Morozenkov, second and third secretaries at the Russian Embassy, both of whom have been linked to Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency, ostensibly worked in culture and business but may have recruited Belarusian nationals and citizens of other Eastern European countries to carry out sabotage against military or civilian infrastructure. Coccia cited a recent attempt to attack Ukrainian aircraft with drones at the airport in Leipzig, Germany.

Coccia reported that another strand of Russian activity leads to the Vatican. He cited Konstantin Nemudrov, an attache at the Russian Embassy accredited to the Holy See. His father, Alexei Nemudrov, was expelled from Italy in 2021 in connection with the case of Walter Biot, an Italian Navy officer convicted of passing classified documents to a Russian official.

A source cited by Coccia claimed that Konstantin Nemudrov is now continuing the work once carried out by his father. The younger Nemudrov is believed to be passing information about internal developments at the Vatican to Moscow.

Coccia stressed that the allegation came from his source, but noted that the Holy See is an especially sensitive subject because the Vatican is one of the most delicate international interlocutors on Ukraine, particularly because of its role in humanitarian initiatives and the issue of Ukrainian children illegally relocated to Russia.

Coccia concluded that the breadth of Russia’s alleged connections has raised suspicions among many members of Italian intelligence about an incident that occurred on Aug. 13 at KNDS Ammo Italy. A fire broke out and a powerful explosion occurred at the ammunition plant near Rome.

Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto later said the Italian government saw no grounds to believe Russia was involved in the explosion at the plant.