(NewsNation) — Russia’s spy networks shouldn’t come a surprise, according to former CIA official Dr. Barry McManus.

“We’ll always have spies attempting to gain information,” McManus said during an appearance on “NewsNation: Rush Hour.” “I don’t think anyone should be surprised. I think the most important thing is, this is the first public acknowledgment of such an action.”

Polish authorities said Thursday that the nation’s security services detained nine members of a Russian espionage ring, alleging that they were preparing acts of sabotage in Poland and had been monitoring railroad routes used for the transport of weapons into Ukraine.

McManus, who served in the Central Intelligence Agency for 26 years as the chief forensic psycho-physiologist, said that the mindset of Putin is important to understand, but that individual advocates of a “Greater Russia” are also behind the spy networks.

“It doesn’t necessarily have to be an orchestrated effort by the Russian government. It could be outside (forces) that are agitators,” McManus said.

Interior Minister Mariusz Kamiński said the Internal Security Agency had arrested nine people suspected of spying for Russia in the case. Three were detained Wednesday.

He said at a news conference in Warsaw that the suspects were preparing “sabotage actions aimed at paralyzing the supply of equipment, weapons and aid to Ukraine.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.