Bulgaria’s military intelligence reports Russian special services' increased activity in certain Western Balkan countries 

This is reported by Novinite, citing Bulgaria’s military intelligence.

“The activity of Russian special services in the territory of… certain countries of the Western Balkans increased significantly during 2022 in an attempt to compensate for the damage caused to Russian legal residences by the expulsion of Russian diplomats from a number of countries in Europe," the agency's conclusions state.

The Bulgarian military intelligence also reports that a "permanent trend towards an increase in cyber security risks is emerging. In the context of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, EU countries, including Bulgaria, have been subjected to repeated and sustained offensive cyber operations. 

“The use of cyber attacks against objects of critical infrastructure in combination with other hybrid techniques and hostile actions such as organizing large-scale information and disinformation campaigns and attempts to provoke social discontent and migration processes, sabotage and sabotage will continue in 2023,” the statement reads.

The Bulgarian intelligence also emphasizes that due to the anticipated intensive flow of refugees from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia to Europe, which is expected to occur throughout 2023, "the risk of the use of migration problems in hybrid operations directed against the EU, as well as the infiltration of members and followers of terrorist groups into European countries, remains.”

• British intelligence experts believe that the high mortality rate among Russian military personnel in the war in Ukraine is due to inadequate medical assistance. During the full-scale war, on average, Russia loses about 400 soldiers per day.