Spanish officer sent home from NATO base over affair with 'Russian spy' | Gravitas

As tensions between NATO and Russia are heating up, what if you were told that a romance which blossomed on a dating app... triggered a security alert at a British military base? A new report sheds light on what happened!

Now, this scare reporteedly took place at UK's Northwood headquarters, which hosts NATO's allied maritime command. This is significant as it is the central command of all NATO maritime forces. The commander of this military unit, serves as the primary maritime advisor to NATO. Crucially, it reportedly monitors Russian submarines and warships prowling UK waters, and tracks sanctioned oil tankers from Russia's shadow fleet.

According to The Telegraph, a senior Spanish naval officer, posted at this base came under the scanner for, starting an affair with a Russian-born woman named Janina White whom he met on the dating app. Although she is a UK-Polish dual national, she was suspected of being a Kremlin agent, by Spanish and NATO authorities.

Suspicion initially arose in December 2024 when White was invited to a Christmas party at the base by the Spanish officer. Subsequently, NATO as well as Spain reportedly launched a formal security investigation into the matter. According to the report, the officer was suspended from duty and, banned from entering the base in June 2025, pending the outcome of the probe. A month later, his posting was terminated.

Despite this, he along with White and a third person, allegedly attempted to re-enter the base in August, to have lunch. Intriguingly though, the officer claimed to have misplaced his own pass and requested, visitor passes for his friends. After being denied entry, the UK-Polish dual national reportedly declined to leave, compelling the authorities to call the police.

But, the woman at the centre of the controversy, had a different story to tell.

White told The Telegraph that, she was no longer in a relationship with the Spanish officer. Maintaining that she was being discriminated due to her Russian heritage, White stressed that she was neither a Russian spy, nor was she ever arrested...

At the same time, she claimed to have been questioned by a Russian intelligence officer when she visited Saint Petersburg last month. White also added that her former partner tried to take his own life in September 2025, as he felt betrayed by the Spanish navy.

A solicitor by profession, White is now seeking a judicial review of, why she was named as an 'adverse security risk' by NATO officials. According to her, the espionage rumours were started by partners of other officers at the base, before being passed on to, counter-intelligence officers in NATO. She has also filed a discrimination case against UK's Ministry of Defence.

As of now, both NATO's allied maritime command and UK's defence ministry declined to comment on the matter citing ongoing legal proceedings.

While the allegation is yet to be proved, in this case, it comes at a time, when NATO has accused Russia of hybrid warfare.