Russian war blog Rybar founder Mikhail Zvinchuk arrested in Montenegro

Detention in Risan

Montenegrin police and security agents detained Mikhail Zvinchuk, head of the Russian war blog Rybar, in the Adriatic resort of Risan on Friday, 9 October, together with his wife and three other Russians. Pobjeda newspaper reported, citing sources, that the charge is spreading 'Russian influence'. Local media describe Zvinchuk as a former employee of the Russian Defence Ministry press service and, citing Pobjeda, as a GRU colonel. HotNews.ro places the detention on the morning of 9 October, as part of an operation by Montenegrin police and the National Security Agency. Rybar's Telegram channel has more than 1.5 million subscribers.

Government warnings

Prime Minister Milojko Spajic confirmed the detention on X and tied it to earlier warnings that the country would face attempts to destabilize it and hybrid warfare, which he described as acts that fall short of direct military conflict. He wrote:

There are serious indications that require every lead to be carefully examined and every connection to be viewed in a broader context.

Spajic also called the operation successful and said Montenegro is protecting its interests and that no one will jeopardize its European future. Montenegro is a candidate for EU membership and joined NATO in 2017. Relations with Moscow have been strained for years. In 2016 authorities accused Russia of plotting with Serbian ultranationalists to stage a coup, a charge the Kremlin denied. In 2022 Montenegro enforced sanctions against Russia, banned Russian state media and expelled Russian diplomats for spying, and Moscow declared it an enemy state in retaliation.

Rybar's account and Moscow's response

Rybar posted that Zvinchuk and the others had been in the country legally and were planning to film at a monastery. Onet reports the project was a documentary on Montenegro's European integration, made for the pro-Kremlin commentator Vladimir Solovyov, with filming planned at the Cetinje monastery, where an official request had been filed in advance. Rybar said its project team is in contact with Russia's Foreign Ministry, and added:

Since there were no violations of local legislation, we expect all detainees to be released.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said its embassy is establishing the circumstances of the detention.

Custody and investigation

Onet, citing the Shot portal, reports that the detainees were taken to the police station in Kotor for questioning. Baza reports that Zvinchuk and his wife were being questioned in Podgorica and that their phones and documents had been seized. Onet also reports that local security forces opened criminal proceedings for threatening national security. According to the same reports, drones and other digital equipment were found in the film crew's room at the hotel where the five were detained.

Background to the Rybar case

In October 2024 the US State Department offered a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the identification of 19 individuals involved in managing Rybar-led social media channels, accusing the project of interfering in the 2024 US election. Zvinchuk is under EU and UK sanctions, and the Digi24 report says the EU sanctions date from 2023. The Bell reported that Yevgeny Prigozhin helped finance the channel. In late September, Seznam Zprávy found that Rybar representatives were active in Europe and regularly interviewed politicians, journalists and experts. Czech authorities then detained and questioned two Russian citizens with ties to Rybar, Vitali Chashchukhin and Igor Dolmatov, and ordered them to leave the country.