Ukraine Operating Secretly in Libya to Launch Mediterranean Strikes Against Russia
Ukrainian military personnel are operating out of western Libya under a clandestine agreement to target Russian assets in the Mediterranean Sea, according to Libyan officials. The presence of these forces, primarily drone specialists, represents a significant expansion of the conflict’s geographic scope, bringing the war to North African soil.
On March 3, 2026, the Russian-flagged tanker “Arctic Metagaz,” which was transporting 61,000 tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG), was severely damaged in what is believed to have been a sea drone strike near the waters of Malta. Two Libyan officials revealed on Tuesday, April 8, 2026, that the attack was carried out by Ukrainian soldiers operating from a military facility in Tripoli.
These operations are part of a secret agreement between Kyiv and the government of Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, based in Tripoli. The Ukrainian personnel are reportedly stationed at an air force base in the coastal city of Misrata, as well as at military sites in Zawiya and the capital, Tripoli.
The deployment is viewed as a strategic effort by NATO to ensure that western Libya remains “unreachable for Russia,” according to Jalel Harchaoui, a Libya analyst at the Royal United Services Institute. Harchaoui noted that it is highly probable that several small groups of Ukrainian soldiers are currently in the Tripoli area with the knowledge and blessing of NATO members, specifically the United States, the United Kingdom, and Turkey.
What we have is not the first instance of such operations. Reports indicate that in December 2025, Ukrainian soldiers in Libya targeted the “Qendil,” a tanker belonging to Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet.”
According to sources cited by RFI, that December attack may have resulted in the death of Andrei Averyanov, a general in the Russian intelligence services. Averyanov, who reportedly traveled through the EU using the shadow fleet to conduct overseas operations under orders from Vladimir Putin, was considered a top candidate to lead the “Africa Corps,” the successor to the Wagner Group. He was known to have strong ties to the region and had previously met with Khalifa Haftar, the leader of Russian-backed armed groups in eastern Libya.
The attack on the “Qendil” reportedly left two people dead and seven injured. Intelligence suggests that Averyanov and approximately ten other high-ranking Russian intelligence officers were on board, disguised as crew members—a tactic frequently used by Russian intelligence for covert travel.
The development underscores a growing regional tension as Ukraine leverages strategic partnerships in North Africa to disrupt Russian logistics and intelligence networks. By utilizing Libyan territory for long-range drone strikes, Kyiv is effectively projecting power into the Mediterranean to challenge Russian maritime interests.
The presence of these foreign military elements adds another layer of complexity to Libya, a country that has been characterized by instability and chaos since the 2011 overthrow of dictator Moammars Kadafi.
