Russia has used cryptocurrencies to pay saboteurs involved in its hybrid attacks on EU countries, in an attempt to prevent intelligence services from tracking the payments, according to a senior Polish security official.

Poland’s national security bureau chief S?awomir Cenckiewicz told the Financial Times that Moscow was probably using this payment method to fund attacks, which have recently ranged from drone incursions to sabotage and attempts to hack water supplies and other critical infrastructure. He also said evidence shared with western intelligence services showed Russia was using its shadow fleet to launch drones into European airspace.

Last month, at least 19 Russian drones violated Poland’s airspace, forcing Nato jets to shoot some of them down in the first direct confrontation between the alliance and the Kremlin’s assets since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Drones have recently also forced airport closures in Denmark, Germany and elsewhere, with Nato holding talks on allowing a more forceful response to the Kremlin’s provocations.