Russia is constructing a large-scale signals intelligence facility near Chernyakhovsk, in the Kaliningrad exclave, less than 100 kilometres from the borders of Poland and Lithuania, United24 Media reported on August 24.

Satellite imagery reviewed by the outlet shows dozens of antennas arranged in circular formations, indicating what analysts say could become one of the largest interception sites in Europe.

The new complex is expected to significantly bolster Moscow’s capability to monitor both military and civilian communications across Nato member states, including Poland, Lithuania and Germany.

Intelligence analysts suggest the site could allow Russia to collect sensitive information and potentially interfere with command and control systems in the event of a regional crisis.

“Such a facility will give Moscow the ability to reach deep into Nato territory,” the report stated, citing defence experts who noted the strategic implications of the development.

The construction underscores the Kaliningrad enclave’s growing importance as a hub for Russia’s electronic warfare infrastructure. It is already home to a battalion of Iskander short-range ballistic missiles that threaten Western European capitals, Russia’s advanced S-400 surface-to-air defence systems, and Bastion coastal defence systems in Kaliningrad, all of which have been confirmed by both open-source intelligence and Western defence officials. So far there are no confirmed reports of the Kremlin moving its powerful Oreshnik ICBMs into the enclave that can reach all of Europe’s capitals within 20 minutes, but there are plans to station these missiles in Belarus.

The heavily militarised enclave, wedged between Nato members, has also been equipped with radar systems, anti-aircraft missile batteries, and short-range ballistic missiles. If Russia were to attack Nato members, then the Baltics would be overrun from Kaliningrad in a matter of days, say military experts.

The expansion of intelligence-gathering capabilities reflects the Kremlin’s preparations for sustained tension with the West, say military experts. “This cements Kaliningrad’s role as a central node for Russian electronic warfare and signals Moscow’s preparations for long-term confrontation with Nato,” United24 Media reported.

The intelligence hub, once operational, could also serve as a critical component of Russia’s broader surveillance and information operations strategy, enabling real-time data collection and signal interception across northern and central Europe.

Lourdes SIGINT station

The construction of a major listening station on Nato’s borders represents a military escalation by Russia. In October 2001, at the start of Putin’s first term in office, as a goodwill gesture, he unilaterally ordered the closure of the Lourdes SIGINT station near Havana.

It was a major Russian signals intelligence base in Cuba that was able to eavesdrop on the entire US eastern seaboard. In the early days of Putin’s presidency, he made several gestures in an effort to build good relations with the rest of Europe, but tensions over Nato’s expansion slowly undermined relations.

The Lourdes SIGINT station had been operated by the Soviet Union throughout the Cold War and was taken over by Russian intelligence services following the collapse of the USSR in 1991.

Formerly the largest Russian-operated listening post outside its borders, the Lourdes SIGINT station partially revived in 2014 in cooperation between Russia and Cuba following imposition of sanctions on Russia after it annexed the Crimea, according to reports. Russian officials denied that an agreement had been finalised, but President Putin visited Havana in July 2014, and signed several economic and military cooperation deals with Cuban President Raúl Castro, prompting speculation that intelligence collaboration might resume quietly.