A coordinated operation by Romania, Czechia and Hungary, supported by Eurojust, has led to the detention of a suspect investigated for treason for allegedly transmitting state secrets.
Eurojust said the individual held two meetings with officers of Belarus’s State Security Committee (KGB) in Budapest in 2024 and 2025 and that the activity “endangered Romania’s national security.”
Hungarian outlet Telex identified the suspect as Alexandru Bălan, a former deputy head of Moldova’s Intelligence and Security Service (SIS) and, for a period, the service’s liaison in Kyiv. Romanian and regional outlets reported that Bălan, 47, was detained in Romania as part of the joint investigation; a Bucharest court has ordered 30 days’ pre-trial detention.
The investigation prompted diplomatic measures. Czechia expelled a Belarusian diplomat on 8 September, alleging misuse of diplomatic cover for intelligence work. Belarus condemned the move. The expelled official was not named by Prague, but independent reporting has identified him as Mikalai (Nikolai) Dukshta, a counsellor for administrative affairs at Belarus’s embassy in Prague; Czech foreign ministry diplomatic lists show a “Mikalai DUKSHTA” holding that role.
Romania’s anti-organised crime directorate (DIICOT) said the suspect met Belarusian intelligence officers twice in Budapest between 2024 and 2025 and is suspected of disclosing state secrets in a way likely to endanger national security. Reporting by international outlets, citing official statements, aligns with Eurojust’s account of the meetings and the treason probe.
The case comes at a sensitive moment for Moldova, which is navigating a contested reform agenda and geopolitical pressure. On 20 October 2024, voters narrowly backed a constitutional amendment enshrining the goal of European Union membership (official result 50.39% “yes”). Moldova holds parliamentary elections on 28 September 2025, with an OSCE mission deployed to observe the vote.
Belarus’s security apparatus retains characteristics of its Soviet-era model: the KGB conducts both domestic security and foreign intelligence functions. Analysts note that since the mass protests of 2020, political and security integration with Russia has deepened.
Military cooperation remains close. Large Russia–Belarus drills, widely referred to as “Zapad 2025,” are scheduled to run in Belarus from Friday 12 September to 16 September, according to defence reporting and official briefings; the exercises follow Belarus’s role in allowing Russian forces to operate from its territory during the early phase of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Michal Koudelka, director of Czechia’s Security Information Service (BIS), said the open borders of the Schengen area complicate counter-intelligence work and argued for tighter movement controls on accredited diplomats from Russia and Belarus. “To successfully counter these hostile activities in Europe, we need to restrict the movement of accredited diplomats from Russia and Belarus within the Schengen area,” he said.
Bălan’s reported activities after leaving the SIS included participation in European security conferences. Authorities have not disclosed what information may have been transferred, nor the specific operational tasking allegedly provided by Belarusian officers. The investigation remains led by Romanian prosecutors with coordination support from Eurojust.
Czech and allied services have repeatedly warned that Belarusian and Russian services use diplomatic cover and cross-border mobility within Schengen to facilitate meetings and payments. In this case, Czechia gave the expelled Belarusian diplomat 72 hours to leave. Belarus has signalled potential retaliation.
The alleged recruitment of a former senior official from a neighbouring state underscores continuing exposure across Central and Eastern Europe to intelligence operations linked to Minsk and Moscow. The outcome of the case—particularly any indictment and trial—will determine what further detail becomes public on the scope of Belarusian activity in EU member states and on any overlaps with Russian services. With Moldova’s election approaching and regional military exercises under way, European security agencies are likely to test additional restrictions on suspect diplomatic movements and step up scrutiny of contacts around policy and defence fora.
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