Sunday, July 16, 2017

Do Russian Intelligence Agents Retire?


Ralph Peters, New York Post: No one ever truly retires from Russian intelligence

Of all the creatures rumored to roam the earth, we can be certain that three do not exist: unicorns, fire-breathing dragons and “former” Russian intelligence agents. Moscow’s security services are like the mob: Once you’re in, you’re in for life. Whether the “former” spy or hit man is doing billion-dollar deals through Cypriot banks or running a tanning parlor in Murmansk, when the capo di capo calls, the game’s back on.

We can’t take the measure of Russians by applying American rules. Here, when you leave an intelligence agency, you leave your access and duties completely behind you (unless you go to work for a Beltway Bandit, in which case there’s a record of your employment). When I retired from US Army Military Intelligence, I was “read off” and could not be tapped for classified work any longer, unless I were formally rehired and processed for a renewed security clearance.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: I was about to make a joke on this story .... that KGB/FSB officers will only retire when they get a better job and/or promotion .... but it does deserve a serious answer.

I can only speak for myself .... but over the years the people who I met that I felt confident were KGB/FSB were always serious and never happy .... but when they got promoted to a high government position and/or started their own business and/or immigrated to the West .... their mood completely changed to one of always being happy and pleasant to be with .... it was almost as if they were set free. There was one person who was in the Soviet delegation at ICAO (when I worked there from 1989 to 1993) who I strongly believed was KGB .... and so did many in the press (see link here). I was always leery of him .... and he was always leery of me. He knew that I wanted reforms and change in the Soviet Union .... but he always left me alone because (and I can only guess) that he did not feel comfortable about who I knew back home .... though I am sure he checked. Years later I met him in Saint Petersburg at an economic seminar where people were debating on what was needed to reform the Russian economy. His character and mood was completely different .... pleasant to be with, gracious, and filled with humour. And in his lecture and Q&A ..... he was as capitalist as you can get .... free markets, minimal government regulations, etc.. But here is the punchline .... he was also (until he retired a few years ago) .... one of President Putin's first economic advisers. He also became (so I was told) a Canadian citizen. It makes you wonder ....

As for Ralph Peters (the writer of the above New York Post commentary) .... I have seen him more than once on the cable networks .... and he has totally jumped the shark on Russia-gate .... labelling those who criticise him and/or want evidence  on what he is claiming as either Putin stooges or worse. He is not helping the debate .... but sadly .... that is the state of much of the U.S. media today.

20 comments:

James said...

Ralph seems to have some difficulty with the difference between habit and motivation.

James said...

Did they all get parts in a Russian remake of
The Matrix"?

War News Updates Editor said...

James. They are looking for a better job .... and what better job than being a top Hollywood star. :)

James said...

WNU,
I guess it is better than sitting in a room lit by candle with a couple of bottles of vodka trying to write that 10,000 page sequel to "War and Peace" trying to keep all the characters names straight:)

Unknown said...

Example

"posted in Booman Tribune: A Progressive Community (personal blog) 27 January 2003"

Booman Tribune has been around long enough that you could call it established but perhaps not mainstream (MSM).

Perhaps you could call it Mainstream of the alt-Left.

Other times there are some real doozies posted.

Then again a lot of the MSM is worthless. Look at Newsweek. It was sold for 1 dollar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UklHiym5yvk

Unknown said...

"Once KGB, always KGB"

That is what a European I know told me.

Jay Farquharson said...

The KGB doesn't exist anymore, it's dutieswere split up between it's replacement, the FSB, ( Foreign) and other security Agencies, ( domestic),

The GRU, ( military, domestic and foreign) is still around.

That said, WNU Editor's observation that known and suspected FSB agents were dour and intimidating, when they were members of Security organizations, that from the days of the Czar, through the Communist years, the Reform years, the Putin years, relied on fear and intimidation,

becoming charming bon-vivant's when they had "retired" to Non Official Cover, and needed something other than fear, intimidation and the gulag, to gain information and access, was just hilarious,

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illegals_Program



Jay Farquharson said...

LMFAO

https://mobile.nytimes.com/blogs/krugman/2017/07/14/the-new-climate-of-treason/?

TWN said...

I was at a Regimental function 2013 and was told by a former Commanding Officer that my Oath to Queen never expires, I suspect that the oath that a KBG officer takes, or to the Constitution in the case of a US Citizen, would be the same. For those who don't know in Canada we take an Oath to the Queen, for the Armed Forces, Police, Courts, Citizenship or Govt Officials etc.

War News Updates Editor said...

Can anyone see the CIA do the same thing in Washington?

FSB Graduates Celebrate By Posting A Video That Is Getting Everyone Else Upset

http://warnewsupdates.blogspot.ca/2016/07/fsb-graduates-celebrate-by-posting.html

of course .... they were punished ....
http://warnewsupdates.blogspot.ca/2016/07/russias-fsb-graduates-punished-for.html

Unknown said...


I haven't seen any Hollywierd plots, where they mention the evil FSB, but give Hollywierd another 1.2 a gen to catch up.

So more people would know what I mean, if I refer to the KGB than if I say FSB.

Even WNU started off by using KGB/FSB.

BTW the Left is still stuck on the Nazis, fascists, & Stasi. The Stasi have not been around since a few years longer than the KGB.

Jay Farquharson said...

"Jay Sekulow, a member of President Donald Trump’s legal team, on Sunday aired a new defense for Donald Trump Jr.’s meeting with a Russian lawyer who promised him damaging information on Hillary Clinton: The Secret Service should not have “allowed these people in” to meet with Trump’s eldest son.

“I wonder why the Secret Service, if this was nefarious, why the Secret Service allowed these people in,” Sekulow said on ABC’s “This Week,” referring to Trump’s protection detail as the Republican candidate. “The President had Secret Service protection at that point, and that raised a question with me.”

Jay Farquharson said...

Salt,
The Bourne Supremacy,
The Americans,
Eastern Promises,
24, Season 5,
Orphan Black,
The Peacemaker,
Alias, Seasons 1& 2





Unknown said...

Covering for Loretta Lynch?

She has a lot to answer for.

"The Hill newspaper reports that the Obama administration went to extraordinary lengths to allow Veselnitskaya to enter the U.S. and remain here to complete her business in this country. After Veselnitskaya, who reportedly has several pro-Hillary Clinton and anti-Donald Trump items on her Facebook page, was denied a U.S. visa, then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch personally intervened and cleared the way for her to come to this country.
British music publicist Rob Goldstone helped to set up the storied June 9, 2016, meeting at Trump Tower in Manhattan between Veselnitskaya, Donald Trump Jr., then-campaign manager Paul Manafort, and presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner, claiming boastfully in an email exchange with Donald Jr. that the Russians wanted to share incriminating information about Democrat Hillary Clinton.
We now know Veselnitskaya had no earth-shattering revelations to impart about the Russia-friendly former secretary of state who was then running against Donald Trump. Instead of offering “Political Opposition Research” at the roughly 20-minute-long get-together, the Russian woman “had no information to provide and wanted to talk about adoption policy and the Magnitsky Act,” Donald Trump Jr. said earlier this week in a statement on Twitter."

Jay, you listed 8 series and/or movies. I hope you know they are fake.

Jay Farquharson said...

LMFAO,

https://m.facebook.com/NataliaVeselnitskaya

Unknown said...

Laughing my OSSOF!

Her tweets are floating around before she scrubbed them.

Jay Farquharson said...

LMFAO,

She didn't scrub her tweets or her facebook page.

LMFAO

Unknown said...

It was barren. I saw the twitter That was much different.

Jay Farquharson said...

… In an emailed response to questions about Sekulow’s comments, Secret Service spokesman Mason Brayman said the younger Trump was not under Secret Service protection at the time of the meeting, which included Trump’s son and two senior campaign officials.

“Donald Trump, Jr. was not a protectee of the USSS in June, 2016. Thus we would not have screened anyone he was meeting with at that time,” the statement said…

The Secret Service’s mission is to provide physical protection for the U.S. president. The agency also protects major presidential candidates. But its role in vetting people who meet with a U.S. president or candidates is limited to ensuring physical safety.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-russia-idUSKBN1A10Q9

Jay Farquharson said...

LMFAO,

Posted the Facebook page, 1892 entries, most in Russian,

A search for a NataliaVeselnitskaya twitter accound, has 0 results,

You are so full of shit your eyes are brown,

LMFAO