Former Western special forces personnel may have trained Russian citizens, including active-duty military personnel, at private facilities in Bulgaria and Serbia, according to a leaked intelligence assessment obtained by The Telegraph.
The document was prepared for an Australian intelligence agency and is reportedly being considered for distribution among the Five Eyes intelligence partners: Australia, Britain, Canada, New Zealand and the United States. However, the allegations have not been independently verified.
The assessment is reportedly based on interviews with two former Australian special forces officers and an active reservist. They claimed that they had been offered work as instructors at private training centres in Bulgaria and Serbia that accepted Russian clients.
One of the facilities mentioned in the document is the Alfa-Metall training centre in the village of Mezhdeni, central Bulgaria. The company publicly advertises tactical, security and firearms courses at its training complex.
According to the leaked document, the centre offered advanced sniper and special forces training, with some courses costing approximately €4,000 per participant. The programmes were reportedly intended for people seeking employment with private military companies, personal protection services and corporate security firms.
The assessment claims that instructors associated with the facility had experience in organisations including Britain’s Special Air Service, Australian special forces, the US Navy and American law enforcement agencies. The Telegraph also reported that Alfa-Metall had previously displayed the SAS symbol on its website and advertised for an instructor with British special forces experience.
Most controversially, the document alleges that Russian citizens continued to receive training at private European facilities after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russian nationals were allegedly still attending courses at the Bulgarian centre in 2025, including close-quarters combat training.
Bulgarian company rejects allegations
Alfa-Metall has firmly denied the claims. A company representative told The Telegraph that the centre had never employed former SAS personnel and had not trained Russian citizens since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The company described the allegations as false.
It also rejected claims of current ties to Alfa Region, a private Russian security company based in St Petersburg. After being shown archived online material referring to a partnership between the two organisations, however, Alfa-Metall acknowledged that professional contacts had existed in the past. It said it was reviewing older promotional materials that might contain outdated information.
Sources connected to the SAS have also questioned the accusations. One source reportedly said that no former members of the unit were known to have participated in the training. Former servicemen additionally noted that some instructors falsely claim to have served in elite British military units.
The British Ministry of Defence declined to address the allegations directly, citing its longstanding policy of not commenting on special forces or intelligence matters. It stressed more generally that the United Kingdom has legislation intended to counter hostile activity conducted on behalf of foreign states.
Australia’s intelligence service is reportedly reviewing the leaked assessment. Its findings could subsequently be shared with British and American agencies through the Five Eyes alliance. At present, the claims remain unconfirmed and are disputed by the Bulgarian company named in the document.
