A French citizen pleads guilty to charges of collecting military data in Russia, state media say

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s state news agency says a French citizen arrested in Moscow has pleaded guilty to criminal charges involving illegally collecting information on military issues in the country. Laurent Vinatier was arrested in June as tensions flared between Moscow and Paris following French President Emmanuel Macron’s comments about the possibility of deploying French troops in Ukraine. Russian authorities accused Vinatier of failing to register as a “foreign agent” while collecting information about Russia’s military. Under Russian law, he could get up to five years in prison. Vinatier is an adviser with the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, a Geneva-based nongovernmental organization.