New Delhi: Ukraine’s embassy in India on Thursday said the National Investigation Agency (NIA) case against six Ukrainian nationals arrested under anti-terrorism laws appeared “orchestrated and politically motivated”. It pointed to media reports suggesting that the arrests were triggered by information provided by Russia.In a press release, the embassy said media reports indicated that the Russian side had provided the information that prompted the allegations, and called this evidence of “a possible orchestrated and politically motivated nature of this case, as evidenced, in particular, by the facts known at this stage.”It rejected any suggestion that the Ukrainian state was involved in supporting terrorist activities. “Ukraine is a state that faces the consequences of Russian terror on a daily basis and, for this very reason, takes a principled and uncompromising stance in combating terrorism in all its forms,” the statement said.The embassy also invoked the joint statement issued following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Ukraine on August 23, 2024, in which the two sides had condemned terrorism in all its forms and called for international cooperation to combat it.“Proceeding from this shared position, Ukraine maintains that any allegation related to terrorism must be considered exclusively on the basis of verified facts, transparent procedures, and full intergovernmental cooperation,” the statement said.Kyiv said it was ready to cooperate with Indian authorities under the bilateral Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, which it described as providing for “the broadest possible measures of mutual legal assistance.”The embassy accused Russia of trying to drive a wedge between the two countries. “It is Russia, as an aggressor state, that seeks under every circumstance to drive a wedge between friendly countries – Ukraine and India,” it said. It called any attempt to use the case to discredit Ukraine “a deliberate effort to harm the bilateral partnership.”Ukraine asked India to ensure that the detained nationals’ rights were observed in accordance with international law, and that the investigation remained legal, transparent and open.The NIA had on March 13 arrested six Ukrainian nationals and one United States (US) citizen under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act on charges of conspiring to carry out terrorist activities against India. The accused were alleged to have travelled to Mizoram without a mandatory Restricted Area Permit, crossed into Myanmar, met ethnic armed groups and delivered multiple consignments of drones from Europe.According to an extract of FIR published by Russian state media RT India, the charges include sending “huge consignments of drones” for the use of Ethnic Armed Groups in Myanmar. The FIR claimed that “these EAGs are also known to be supporting some proscribed Indian Insurgent Groups by way of supplying weapons and other terrorist hardware and training them thus affecting national security and interest of India”.While the NIA charges suggest a link between Myanmar Ethnic Armed Groups and Indian insurgent factions, the specific groups involved remain unidentified. This claim is complicated by the fact that most Myanmar EAGs are currently prioritized on their conflict with the Myanmar junta and have actively sought constructive engagement with New Delhi over last couple of years.The US national was identified as Matthew VanDyke, founder of Sons of Liberty International, which aims to provide military training and supplies to forces fighting authoritarian regimes. VanDyke has been working in Ukraine since March 2022 and enlisted in the Ukrainian armed forces as a combatant.The group posted on X that it was aware of the detention of VanDyke. “We are in communication with the US State Department, which is aware of Matthew’s detention and is in contact with local authorities in India”, it wrote.SOLI, Sons of Liberty International3/18/2026The SOLI team is aware of the detention of SOLI founder @Matt_VanDyke in India.We are awaiting more details from his appointed attorney, and the NIA authorities in Delhi.We are in communication with the US State Department,…— SOLI (@OfficialSOLI) March 18, 2026Ukraine lodged a formal protest with India on March 17, with Ambassador Oleksandr Polishchuk meeting MEA Secretary (West) Sibi George and handing over a note demanding the immediate release of the detained nationals and consular access to them. A court has extended their custody until March 27.Responding to a query at the weekly media briefing on Wednesday, the MEA spokesperson described it as a legal matter under NIA investigation. “Consular access has been requested. We will look into it as per the legal requirements that are there in the case,” the spokesperson said.