Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Igor Ivanko / Pool via REUTERS
Russia on Wednesday rejected allegations that it was connected to a U. S. Army soldier who was arrested in the United Kingdom on suspicion of espionage.
British counterterrorism police arrested the 41-year-old senior U. S. soldier on Tuesday near the city of Gloucester in southwestern England following a joint investigation with the FBI and U. S. Army counterintelligence.
He was arrested under two sections of the U. K. National Security Act, which pertain to obtaining or disclosing protected information and assisting a foreign intelligence service. The law allows counterterrorism police to hold him without charge for up to 14 days.
British law enforcement said the country to which the allegations relate is Russia.
“This arrest does not concern us in any way,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters during a daily briefing. “We don’t know what it’s connected to. We have nothing to do with this.”
FBI Director Kash Patel said the arrest of the American soldier related to allegations of espionage, “which is of the utmost concern to the United States and our allies.”
Brigadier General Sean Stanchion, the commanding general of U. S. Army Counterintelligence Command, called the alleged conduct of a senior soldier entrusted with sensitive information a “sobering reminder that insider threats are real and persistent.”
Western countries have for years accused the Kremlin of espionage within their borders, as well as masterminding a string of incidents to undermine support for Ukraine.
AFP and Reuters contributed reporting.
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