Montenegro Detains Rybar Founder Mikhail Zvinchuk in Risan
He was detained with his wife Valeria and three others. The EU has sanctioned him since 2023, and the State Department offered up to $10 million for information on the network.
Montenegrin police and the National Security Agency (ANB) detained Mikhail Zvinchuk in Risan on October 9. He is the founder of the Russian information network Rybar, whose activity has spread to Serbia in recent years. Also detained were his wife and associate Valeria Vladimirovna Zvinchuk and three other people whose names have not been released.
For readers in Serbia, this news is not distant. Radio Free Europe reports that the network has expanded its activities in the Western Balkans in recent years, including Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The US Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported in November 2024 that Zvinchuk had spoken of an international network of more than 250 communication channels in 28 languages, and of opening media schools in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kyrgyzstan.
What is known about the operation in Risan?
According to security-sector sources of the Podgorica daily Vijesti, the operation on the ground was led by officers of the Tivat Security Department together with the ANB. The same sources say drones, digital equipment, electronic devices and phones were found on those detained, without saying how many items. Montenegrin services reportedly knew in advance that members of the network were coming and monitored their stay for several days.
Media use different terms: RTS and Detektor write about an arrest, while N1 and Spajic speak of a detention. As of publication, the police, the ANB and the prosecutor’s office have not said what criminal offense the five detainees are suspected of. Radio Free Europe says it received no reply to its questions about the operation.
Why was Zvinchuk in the Bay of Kotor?
The sources disagree here. Vijesti’s sources claim the crew came to film documentary material about Montenegro’s announced alignment of its visa policy with European Union standards, and that the content was meant to portray European integration as a politically imposed process with consequences for tourism, economic stability and national interests. The Rybar network says otherwise on Telegram: that the plan was to film Cetinje Monastery, for which, it says, an official request had been submitted earlier.
Detektor adds that the day before the detention, Zvinchuk posted on the Rybar Telegram channel that he was filming a story about visas for citizens of Russia, Belarus and Turkey, in a video recorded in the Bay of Kotor. He said alignment with European Union rules could affect the Montenegrin economy: “Russian tourists accounted for a significant share of overnight stays in the country. Now hotels, restaurants and other tourism businesses risk losing clients, and the budget risks losing tax revenue.”
What is Rybar and why is it under sanctions?
Rybar was founded in 2018. Zvinchuk is a former employee of the press service of the Russian Ministry of Defense, and the network’s Telegram channel, according to Detektor, has more than 1.3 million followers. The European Union has had Zvinchuk under sanctions since 2023 for supporting Russia’s war against Ukraine and spreading propaganda. It also cites his membership in a working group that Russian President Vladimir Putin formed to coordinate mobilization efforts tied to the war.
In October 2024, the State Department offered up to $10 million through its Rewards for Justice program for information on people linked to Rybar, citing suspected interference in the US presidential election. Mikhail and Valeria Zvinchuk are on a list of nine people. Sources differ on the British measures: Detektor writes that both have been on the United Kingdom’s sanctions list since December 2025, while Danas says Britain introduced additional sanctions in July 2026 against people linked to the network.
The Montenegrin daily Pobjeda, citing unnamed security-sector sources, claims Zvinchuk is a colonel in Russian military intelligence (GRU) in charge of hybrid operations. There is no official confirmation of this.
What did Prime Minister Spajic and the network itself say?
Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajic responded in a post on X. He wrote that attempts at hybrid action and destabilization relentlessly shadow Montenegro’s European path, and then added:
“This is not the moment for hasty statements, but also not for naive conclusions. There are serious indications that require every trace to be carefully examined and every link to be seen in a wider context. We will not disclose what must remain within the domain of the security services.”
The message of the operation, in his words, is that institutions are doing their job and that no one will endanger the country’s European future.
Rybar confirmed on Telegram that Zvinchuk and his wife were detained along with other Russian citizens, and said they were staying legally. The network says its team is in contact with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which is working to resolve the situation. “Specifically, the plan was to film Cetinje Monastery, for which an entirely official request had been submitted beforehand,” the network said, and added: “Since there were no violations of local legislation, we expect all those detained to be released.”
The link to Republika Srpska
Detektor recalls that in June 2024 the authorities of Republika Srpska announced cooperation with Rybar, after Zvinchuk met Drazen Visnjic, director of the entity’s Agency for Information and Communication Technologies. It was then announced that they had agreed to cooperate in the Balkans by opening a school for modern media. The same outlet says its investigation from last November showed that Zvinchuk stayed in Banja Luka during the early elections for president of Republika Srpska.
More details on the results of the operation and any proceedings are expected after the Police Directorate and the competent prosecutor’s office in Montenegro make an official statement.
