Ukrainian-backed sabotage missions inside Russia aren’t like action movies and require operatives to stay cool under pressure, a military commander directly involved in these attacks told Business Insider.
The Freedom of Russia Legion, a Ukrainian-based paramilitary unit, recently disclosed a covert mission that it said destroyed six gas distribution stations near Moscow, causing more than $6 million in damage.
The mission, carried out over the winter by operatives inside Russia, involved months of planning, Caesar, the legion’s deputy commander, said in an interview this week. He requested to be identified by his call sign for security reasons.
Such missions are “not built around some heroism or improvisation,” but rather discipline, patience, and careful preparation, Caesar said, adding that planning is the most essential part because Russian security services are always watching.
People often imagine covert sabotage missions like “action stories,” fueled by an adrenaline rush. However, “the reality is almost the opposite,” Caesar said. The most valuable quality is the ability to remain calm, follow the plan, and know when to postpone or abort — that’s what separates success from failure.
‘The most powerful resistance in Russia’
REUTERS/Alex Babenko
The covert mission was carried out this past winter, but the Freedom of Russia Legion waited months to disclose any details because the unit had to extract multiple operatives across the border into Ukraine. Had they stayed and been caught, they could face extensive prison time or worse.
On June 22, the legion said it destroyed six distribution stations belonging to Gazprom, Russia’s state-owned energy corporation. The operatives struck infrastructure in the Moscow and Tver regions.
Russia’s energy sector has long been targeted by Ukrainian forces as part of efforts to cut revenue from oil exports. Kyiv often refers to this campaign, primarily consisting of drone strikes, as “long-range sanctions.”
Much of the legion’s sabotage mission is classified. The group called it “Torch,” Caesar said, a nod to the Allied invasion of North Africa during World War II. It is also a symbol of the Russian energy sector.
Planning began a year ago and involved months of preparation. The first step was to gather intelligence on the target. Then the legion conducted a risk assessment to determine whether it could effectively carry out the attacks. It also worked to identify vulnerable points.
The mission involved a large network of operatives across Russia who had been trained from afar. “That’s our resistance — the most powerful resistance in Russia — which works daily to crush” the Kremlin’s systems, Caesar said.
Maxim Konankov/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Caesar described the mission as a series of strikes that “really ruined the infrastructure” and forced Russian security services to commit resources to prevent any additional attacks. But the commander said there will be more operations like this one in the future.
Covert actions ‘every day’
The Freedom of Russia Legion was formed in March 2022 by Russians who oppose President Vladimir Putin. It operates independently unless it is engaged in combat or conducting missions, in which cases, it falls under the command of Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence agency.
The legion has been carrying out sabotage inside Russia since 2022, burning military vehicles and aircraft, crashing logistics trains, and attacking factories, among other actions.
Caesar said that small, covert actions “are going on every day;” larger operations are less frequent occurrences. For instance, he said that stopping a train isn’t complicated, but even if the railroad is down for a few hours, it can still affect Russia’s military advance.
And the legion has no intention of slowing down.
“Every day, every week, every month, our regiment is growing,” said Caesar. The legion is several thousand-strong right now. Many people, he said, “clearly understand that Putin really ruined Russia. He has not only ruined Ukraine — he has really ruined Russia.”
