Poland Says It Broke Up Russian Spy Network

Welcome to today’s Morning Brief, where we’re looking at Poland’s claims of breaking up of a Russian spy network, French President Emmanuel Macron’s maneuver to pass pension reform without a parliamentary vote, and Israel’s reported approval of export licenses for anti-drone systems in Ukraine.

If you would like to receive Morning Brief in your inbox every weekday, please sign up here.

Polish Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski said Poland has broken up a Russian spy network and that it detained nine people who were getting ready to engage in sabotage and were monitoring rail routes to Ukraine.

“The suspects conducted intelligence activities against Poland and prepared acts of sabotage at the request of Russian intelligence,” Kaminski said.

Six of the detained people were charged with espionage and participation in a criminal group; prosecution against the other three people was reportedly still ongoing.

Kaminski said the group was attempting to destabilize relations between Poland and Ukraine.

The efforts do not appear to have paid off: Poland said Thursday that it plans to send approximately a dozen MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine. It will give Kyiv the first four in the coming days, making it the first NATO country to send fighter jets to Ukraine. (On Friday, Slovakia announced that it would send 13 of its Soviet-era fighter jets to Ukraine but did not specify the timeline.)

We want to hear from you! Tell us about your experience with Morning Brief by taking 5 minutes to fill out this survey. Thank you for your time and for helping us make this newsletter a better resource for you.

Shock victory for Dutch farmers’ protest party. The relatively young Farmer-Citizen Movement (known by its Dutch initials BBB) is poised to be the biggest party in the Dutch upper house of parliament following provincial elections.

The BBB was set up after farmers’ protests in 2019. With almost 20 percent of the vote, the BBB can likely expect 15 seats in the Senate. Caroline van der Plas, the party’s leader, credited “all normal citizens who voted.” Turnout was the highest in years at 57.5 percent, and the Forum for Democracy, a far-right party, was the biggest loser of the night. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s governing coalition will be down eight seats but keep 24 while a Green-Labour alliance also looks set to have 15 seats.

Israel approves export licenses for Ukraine. For the first time since Russia’s war in Ukraine began last February, Israel approved export licenses for “the possible sale of anti-drone jamming systems that could help Ukraine counter Iranian drones used by Russia during the war,” Axios reported.

Israel has thus far been careful not to help Ukraine’s militarily for fear of upsetting Russia. This decision reportedly came in mid-February while Israel was conducting a review of the war requested by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. No actual deal for anti-drone systems has been signed.

Global cocaine production hits new levels. Cocaine production around the world has hit record levels. Demand is bouncing back after COVID-19, and new trafficking hubs have reportedly emerged in West and Central Africa. Traffickers are also reportedly increasingly dependent on postal services. The Global Report on Cocaine found that North America and Europe are the main markets, followed by Central and South America and the Caribbean.

What next in war? More than one year into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Moscow is far from achieving its war aims and Kyiv continues to vow to fight on. How long can the two sides last? Can Kyiv win a protracted war? For answers, register to watch FP’s Ravi Agrawal in conversation with retired four-star U.S. Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove, who led U.S. forces in Europe and served as NATO’s supreme allied commander Europe from 2013 to 2016.

• Russia Is Furious at Georgia’s Protesters by Laura Thornton

• Nigeria’s Kingmakers Are Still in Control by Nosmot Gbadamosi

• South Korea Could Get Away With the Bomb by Ramon Pacheco Pardo

Having their cake. Road construction in Swindon, England, has been going on for three years now—initially delayed by COVID-19 lockdowns—and local councillors and activists angry about dangerous traffic patterns decided to mark the occasion with a cake.

Labour councilor Jim Robbins said, “It gives me no pleasure to be holding another birthday party for Mead Way. … I would much rather that we were focusing on a well-designed and well-delivered road project, but residents are still suffering after the years of delays and broken promises from the council and now the dangerous layout which seems to be causing near misses on a daily basis.”