Dissident author warns Russians in Europe to be on guard

FRANKFURT – Russian author Sergei Lebedev’s novel “Untraceable”, about an undetectable toxin used to target Kremlin critics, was released a few years ago but has taken on added resonance as alleged poisonings have multiplied.

Now the dissident writer is warning that the Russian exile community in Europe faces an ever greater threat amid heightened tensions over the Ukraine war.

“This emigre community in Europe is now one of the most important targets for the Russian security (services),” the 42-year-old, now based in Germany, told AFP in an interview at the Frankfurt Book Fair this week.

“There will be attempts to infiltrate, to get informants .. Of course, there will be some assassination attempts.”

In Germany — which Lebedev describes as a “hub” for overseas Russians — there have been a growing number of suspected cases of Kremlin critics being targeted.

In May,…