Russian intelligence helped NIA nab US national VanDyke & six Ukrainians

Russian authorities shared intel with India on the activities of six Ukrainian nationals and a US citizen recently arrested by the NIA, for allegedly training ethnic armed groups in Myanmar, reported the Hindustan Times, citing people familiar with the matter.

The National Security Agency (NIA) on March 13 arrested six Ukrainians and one US citizen for allegedly supporting ethnic war groups in Myanmar by supplying weapons, terrorist hardware and training them.

Russian authorities shared intel with India on the activities of six Ukrainian nationals and a US citizen recently arrested by the NIA, for allegedly training ethnic armed groups in Myanmar, reported the Hindustan Times, citing people familiar with the matter.

The accused include US citizen Matthew Aaron Van Dyke and Ukrainian citizens Hurba Petro, Slyviak Taras, Ivan Sukmanovskyi, Stefankiv Marian, Honcharuk Maksim, and Kaminskyi Viktor.

They face arrest under Section 18 (Terror Conspiracy) of the BNS.

Special NIA Judge Prashant Sharma remanded all seven accused to 11 days of NIA custody on Monday, granting less than the 15 days sought by the agency. The custody runs until March 27, with the hearing held in a closed courtroom.

NIA alleged the accused, linked to ethnic armed groups in Myanmar, supported proscribed Indian insurgent groups by supplying weapons, terrorist hardware, training fighters, and importing drones from Europe via India. They entered Mizoram (a protected area) on visas, crossed into Myanmar for training, and abetted terrorists wielding AK-47s, directly threatening India's national security.

The court affirmed: "The FIR details illegal acts against India's security and interests, so Section 18 of UAPA broadly applies."

After the arrest, Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs Press Service stated that Ambassador to India Dr. Oleksandr Polishchuk met Secretary (West) Sibi George at India's Ministry of External Affairs, handing over "an official note of protest demanding immediate release of the Ukrainian citizens and access to them."

The Embassy is also coordinating with other Indian authorities to clarify the detention's circumstances.

A US Embassy spokesperson noted: "We are aware of the situation. For privacy reasons, we cannot comment on cases involving US citizens."

NIA told the court that the seven accused entered India on tourist visas at different times, flew to Guwahati, and then traveled to Mizoram without a required Restricted Area Permit (RAP) or Protected Area Permit (PAP).

The accused allegedly crossed illegally into Myanmar for pre-scheduled training of ethnic armed groups, known for aiding Indian terror outfits with drone warfare, operations, assembly, jamming tech, and attacks on the Myanmar junta, NIA told the court.

NIA informed the court that US citizen VanDyke and the six Ukrainians confessed during questioning to repeatedly training Myanmar ethnic armed groups, plus illegally importing large drone consignments from Europe via India, for use by the groups.

While the sources close to the matter countered that no evidence has been disclosed on the alleged crimes. While affirming trust in India's judiciary, they stressed preventing any evidence manipulation against the Ukrainians, as per the Hindustan Times report.

On the other hand, US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor on Wednesday met with NSA Ajit Doval and described there interaction as "extremely fruitful," focusing on key security and geopolitical issues amid advancing US-India strategic ties.

Although it is unclear if there were any discussions about the arrest of US citizen Van Dyke. The matter remains under investigation.