France, Poland and European allies warn of escalating Russian 'hybrid' attacks

The leaders of France, Poland, and other leading European nations are alarmed over what they describe as Russian "hybrid" attacks. Transcript SCOTT SIMON, HOST: And now to Europe, where leaders in France, Poland and across the continent this week are saying the Russians are coming. Their warning stems from what they say are increasingly brazen Russian attacks. NPR's Russia correspondent, Charles Maynes, joins us now. Charles, thanks so much for being with us.CHARLES MAYNES, BYLINE: Good morning, Scott.SIMON: When these European leaders mention Russian attacks, they call them hybrid. What's that?MAYNES: Well, they're referring to moves that fall into a kind of gray zone. You know, they're not traditional military attacks but nonetheless undermine Europe's sense of security. So we've seen what looked to be attempts to sabotage defense or logistics infrastructure. For example, attack drones were found hidden at an airport in Germany that serves as a transit hub for NATO. There are also allegations of cyberattacks, election interference or misinformation. And in the U.S., the Trump administration's Justice Department last week said it had foiled a Russian plot to assassinate an exiled ...