John
07-03-2010, 10:18 PM
Intelligence sources have said that espionage continues to be a significant issue decades after the end of the cold war.
These days, intelligence gathering is less about nuclear weapons secrets and more about geo-political issues.
Edward Lucas, an expert and author on post cold war spying techniques said the figure of hundreds of Russian intelligence operatives in the UK was credible.
He said: "I think what really interests them would be things like, what's the foreign policy of this government going to be under Clegg and Cameron?
"Are we going to see the same quite tough attitude towards Russia, support for the East European countries that we saw under Tony Blair?
"Is it going to go back to being more realpolitik, less about allies, more about trade? Those are the kind of questions they would like answers to."
On Friday, three more suspected Russian spies appeared before a court in the US.
Two of them, Michael Zottoli and Patricia Mills were denied bail after prosecutors argued they were a flight risk.
Prosecutors say the pair, who had been living as a married couple with two young children, revealed their real names after being arrested.
Zottoli and Mills were in fact Mikhail Kutzik and Natalia Pereverzeva, both born in Russia.
A third suspect, Mikhail Semenko, was in the United States using his real name.
He was involved in an FBI sting last weekend that led to the round-up of 10 further alleged members of the ring. He was also denied bail.
In the UK, intelligence officials continue to probe any British links to the suspects.
Anna Chapman, the daughter of a Russian diplomat, is known to have links to the UK.
She married Briton Alex Chapman in 2002 and lived for several years here, before travelling to the United States.
Her husband has told a national newspaper he had no idea his former wife was a spy, but that her behaviour had become strange and distant before they separated a few years ago.
Sky News understands that a company set up by Anna and Alex Chapman is being investigated.
Authorities are looking at the accounts of Southern Union, which was established by the couple in 2002, amid suspicions it may have been used to channel funds for spying purposes.
It is also believed Anna Chapman had befriended a number of prominent British businessmen and politicians during her time in the UK.
The Russian analyst, Alexander Nekrassov said the use of deep cover spies is a technique the Russians have favoured for many years.
He told Sky News that even after the Cold War ended, Russia still felt the need to keep large numbers of operatives in foreign countries.
He said he believed there could well be a few hundred intelligence gatherers in the UK.
"There are probably hardened spies, professionals and that would be quite a small number, who would be looking for recruitment, that's the ultimate goal of any intelligence service.
"The others would simply be supplying business information, information about people.
"They would basically be befriending people for the sake of having connections. So yes, it is quite conceivable that there is a wide network of people helping Russian intelligence in Britain."
So far, the political fall-out from this affair has been low-key, with all sides it seems keeping an eye on the bigger picture.
Britain's former Ambassador to the US, Sir Christopher Meyer, said: "What we've seen is something which is classic.
"You've got relations going along at one level, the political level, which here seems to be more important and then somewhere down in the weeds, there is a long running espionage operation that was started, maybe 20 years ago and suddenly these two things have come together.
"But I think damage control is the order of the day both in Moscow and in Washington."
Nine of the 11 spy ring suspects remain in custody. One has been bailed.
Another, Christopher Metsos - suspected of being the group's paymaster - was arrested and then bailed in Cyprus.
He has since disappeared. Authorities there say he has probably fled the island.
A total of eight children have also been caught up in the investigation, the offspring of some of the suspects.
The younger children are being sent to live with family in Russia. Some of the others have chosen to stay near their parents, despite the intense media scrutiny.
These days, intelligence gathering is less about nuclear weapons secrets and more about geo-political issues.
Edward Lucas, an expert and author on post cold war spying techniques said the figure of hundreds of Russian intelligence operatives in the UK was credible.
He said: "I think what really interests them would be things like, what's the foreign policy of this government going to be under Clegg and Cameron?
"Are we going to see the same quite tough attitude towards Russia, support for the East European countries that we saw under Tony Blair?
"Is it going to go back to being more realpolitik, less about allies, more about trade? Those are the kind of questions they would like answers to."
On Friday, three more suspected Russian spies appeared before a court in the US.
Two of them, Michael Zottoli and Patricia Mills were denied bail after prosecutors argued they were a flight risk.
Prosecutors say the pair, who had been living as a married couple with two young children, revealed their real names after being arrested.
Zottoli and Mills were in fact Mikhail Kutzik and Natalia Pereverzeva, both born in Russia.
A third suspect, Mikhail Semenko, was in the United States using his real name.
He was involved in an FBI sting last weekend that led to the round-up of 10 further alleged members of the ring. He was also denied bail.
In the UK, intelligence officials continue to probe any British links to the suspects.
Anna Chapman, the daughter of a Russian diplomat, is known to have links to the UK.
She married Briton Alex Chapman in 2002 and lived for several years here, before travelling to the United States.
Her husband has told a national newspaper he had no idea his former wife was a spy, but that her behaviour had become strange and distant before they separated a few years ago.
Sky News understands that a company set up by Anna and Alex Chapman is being investigated.
Authorities are looking at the accounts of Southern Union, which was established by the couple in 2002, amid suspicions it may have been used to channel funds for spying purposes.
It is also believed Anna Chapman had befriended a number of prominent British businessmen and politicians during her time in the UK.
The Russian analyst, Alexander Nekrassov said the use of deep cover spies is a technique the Russians have favoured for many years.
He told Sky News that even after the Cold War ended, Russia still felt the need to keep large numbers of operatives in foreign countries.
He said he believed there could well be a few hundred intelligence gatherers in the UK.
"There are probably hardened spies, professionals and that would be quite a small number, who would be looking for recruitment, that's the ultimate goal of any intelligence service.
"The others would simply be supplying business information, information about people.
"They would basically be befriending people for the sake of having connections. So yes, it is quite conceivable that there is a wide network of people helping Russian intelligence in Britain."
So far, the political fall-out from this affair has been low-key, with all sides it seems keeping an eye on the bigger picture.
Britain's former Ambassador to the US, Sir Christopher Meyer, said: "What we've seen is something which is classic.
"You've got relations going along at one level, the political level, which here seems to be more important and then somewhere down in the weeds, there is a long running espionage operation that was started, maybe 20 years ago and suddenly these two things have come together.
"But I think damage control is the order of the day both in Moscow and in Washington."
Nine of the 11 spy ring suspects remain in custody. One has been bailed.
Another, Christopher Metsos - suspected of being the group's paymaster - was arrested and then bailed in Cyprus.
He has since disappeared. Authorities there say he has probably fled the island.
A total of eight children have also been caught up in the investigation, the offspring of some of the suspects.
The younger children are being sent to live with family in Russia. Some of the others have chosen to stay near their parents, despite the intense media scrutiny.