Yuri Stilve, who has been convicted of spying for Russia, was ordered to take pictures of petroleum product warehouses and a communications tower on the border, and to find out what kind of underwear Latvian soldiers wear.
A 20-year-old information technology (IT) student was recruited by Russia to spy against Estonia, but kicked to the curb when he got caught. From behind bars, he tells his tale to Re:Baltica.
The Russian man was waiting a long time for someone he was supposed to meet in a park not far from Budapest. Neither his appearance nor behavior were out of place. As he walked among the trees, everything looked ordinary. Some passers-by were enjoying the scenery while a couple kissing nearby were enjoying each other. The temperature seemed just right. It was a great time to get out of town.
It was supposed to be just another winter hunt for Sergejus Pusinas (35), a captain in the Lithuanian Air Force. Then a red light flashing in a fellow hunter’s pocket caught his eye. It triggered a series of events that finally led him to the point of no return.
People who regularly cross the Russian border are more vulnerable to the risk of recruitment. As opposed to officials who work with state secrets and have been warned about the methods of foreign intelligence services, the average person is less informed. A friendly question by Russian border guards, such as whether a bribe should be given to anyone on the Latvian side and to whom, may seem innocent but allows the other side to mark potential recruits.
The Hungarian government has developed close ties with Vladimir Putin’s Russia in recent years, hence Budapest’s response to the “Skripal case” may have seemed surprisingly tough. In spring of 2018, Viktor Orbán’s government decided to expel a Russian diplomat in a show of solidarity with the United Kingdom after the poisoning of Sergei Skripal, a former Russian spy now living in the UK.