Mikhail Zvinchuk, a prominent pro-Kremlin Russian military blogger, has been arrested in Montenegro, officials announced. Zvinchuk, who founded the influential Rybar war blog, was detained on Friday in the Adriatic resort town of Risan by police and security agents. His wife and three other Russian nationals were also detained.
Local media reported that the arrests were made on suspicion of spreading Russian influence. Montenegro's Prime Minister, Milojko Spajić, confirmed Zvinchuk's detention, stating it followed warnings about attempts to destabilise the Balkan country through hybrid warfare.
Rybar, founded in 2018 by Zvinchuk, a former press officer for Russia's defence ministry, is a widely followed Russian military blog covering the war in Ukraine. The channel has over 1.5 million subscribers on Telegram and promotes pro-Kremlin narratives across various regions.
The UK sanctioned Zvinchuk and Rybar in December 2025 due to their role in disseminating Kremlin propaganda and undermining support for Ukraine. The British government stated that Zvinchuk received funding from the Russian state-owned defence conglomerate Rostec and collaborated with Russian intelligence services. The US has also accused Zvinchuk of attempting to interfere in the 2024 presidential election.
The Rybar channel stated on Telegram that its team is in contact with Russia's foreign ministry to resolve the situation, expecting the detainees' release as they believe no local legislation was violated. The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, confirmed Moscow's awareness of the detention and its efforts to secure Zvinchuk's release. Russia's former president Dmitry Medvedev suggested on social media that Moscow might detain European and American citizens for prisoner exchanges.
This arrest is expected to further strain relations between Montenegro and Russia, which have been tense for some time. Montenegro, a Nato member since 2017 and an EU candidate, imposed sanctions on Russia following its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The country recently approved plans to end visa-free travel for Russian citizens from 1 November.