NIA Arrests American, Ukrainian Mercenaries in Northeast India Terror Plot

The arrest of an American mercenary and six Ukrainian nationals by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has laid bare what investigators are calling a sophisticated foreign-backed plot to destabilise India's northeastern states — one with roots in Myanmar and tentacles stretching into Europe.

The seven accused are currently in NIA custody and face charges under the stringent provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

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The detained individuals have been identified as Matthew Aaron VanDyke, an American national, along with six Ukrainian nationals — Maksym Honcharuk, Petro Hubra, Ivan Sukmanovskyi, Marian Stefankiv, Taras Slyviak, and Viktor Kaminskyi.

According to investigators, the group had confessed to training Myanmar-based ethnic armed organisations. But the scope of the operation goes well beyond conventional military training.

The accused were found to have smuggled drones and electronic jamming equipment from Europe into the region, using tourist visas as cover. The group has reportedly been active since 2024, making regular trips to Myanmar to train insurgent groups in drone warfare.

NIA officials say the arrests are just the tip of the iceberg. Intelligence inputs suggest that as many as nine other individuals may be part of the same network, and the agency is now actively hunting for local facilitators who helped the operation run from within India.

"Such an operation could not have taken place without local help," one official said.

An Intelligence Bureau official described the situation as a dangerous precedent. "The network is much larger than it appears, and these persons were in for a long haul, where the northeast was the target," the official added.

What has alarmed investigators is the broader strategic intent behind the operation. Officials say the accused and their overseas handlers were working to turn the northeast into a corridor for foreign mercenaries — with the India-Myanmar border being used not just for training, but potentially for launching attacks in other countries as well.

Mizoram's porous border, officials say, has been a key enabler. The terrain, combined with support from certain Myanmar-based groups, allowed the mercenaries to conduct training exercises and smuggle in advanced equipment with relative ease.

Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma had flagged concerns about suspicious foreign visitors in the state Assembly as far back as 2024. Officials now say that many of those who visited the northeast in recent years — particularly Mizoram — may not have been genuine tourists, and could have been on reconnaissance missions or recruitment drives targeting insurgent groups.

The arrests were not a sudden development. The NIA had been monitoring the accused for three months before moving in — and it was Russia that provided the initial intelligence that set the investigation in motion.

India is expected to continue working closely with Russia on this case and on future threats of a similar nature.

Officials are now emphasising that the scrutiny of foreign visitors to northeastern states will be significantly tightened going forward.

Local police forces have also been put on notice. Identifying local operatives and dismantling their support modules within the northeast is being treated as a critical priority.

"It has taken a lot to restore normalcy in the northeast," one official said. "Foreign elements are aware that if violence breaks out in this region, it would be a huge task to restore it again."

Intelligence agencies say the sophistication of this operation — and the willingness of foreign nationals to be directly involved — is a clear indicator that insurgent activity in the region may be on the rise again.