(ANSA-AP) - PODGORICA, 09 MAG - A Montenegro court on
Thursday sentenced 13 people, including two Russian secret
service operatives, to up to 15 years in prison after they were
convicted of plotting to overthrow the Balkan country's
government and prevent it from joining NATO.
Chief judge Suzana Mugosa said the two Russians, identified
as Eduard Shishmakov and Vladimir Popov, were convicted of
"attempted terrorism" and "creating a criminal organization."
The two were tried in absentia. Shishmakov received a 15-year
prison term while Popov got 12 years.
Two leading ethnic Serb opposition politicians, Andrija
Mandic and Milan Knezevic, were sentenced to five years each.
The verdict said the group planned to take over parliament on
election day on Oct. 16, 2016, assassinate then-Prime Minister
Milo Djukanovic and install a pro-Russia, anti-NATO leadership.
Montenegro joined NATO in June 2017 as the Western military
alliance's 29th member despite strong opposition from Moscow,
which considers the small Adriatic country a historic Slavic
ally and is opposed to NATO's enlargement. The Kremlin has
repeatedly denied involvement in the coup attempt.
Montenegro's police thwarted the action after receiving tips
from Western spy organizations, authorities said. The Russian
pair, said to be members of the Russian military se cret service
agency GRU, coordinated the attempted coup from neighboring
Serbia, the verdict said. They were allowed by Serbia's
pro-Russia authorities to leave for Moscow despite reports t hat
they operated with sophisticated spy equipment.
The judge said that the Russians provided at least 200,000
euros for the purchase of rifles and guns. The two tried to
recruit "as many people as possible to come to the protest" and
try to "change the electoral will" and "prevent Montenegro from
joining NATO." The judge said that the two ethnic Serb
politicians made several trips to Moscow on the eve of the
election where they were be lieved to get instructions from the
GRU operatives. (ANSA-AP).
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