June 2022 Intelligence News

Vladimir Putin congratulated current staff and veterans of the Foreign Intelligence Service on the centenary of illegal intelligence President of Russia 30 Jun 2022 -- The President laid flowers at the Fatherland, Valour Honour monument at the Foreign Intelligence Service headquarters in Moscow and congratulated the Service's current staff and veterans on the centenary of illegal intelligence.
Australian Spy Chief Discusses Geopolitical Threats in First-Ever TV Interview VOA 30 Jun 2022 -- The head of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service, in a rare television interview, has outlined concerns about China's economic and military ambitions.
With 70 Russian Diplomats Leaving Bulgaria, Moscow's Controversial Ambassador Is Staying RFE/RL 30 Jun 2022 -- If ambassadors are tasked with fostering warm ties between their home country and host nation, then Eleonora Mitrofanova is not doing her job.
US surveillance satellite probe poses big security threat: experts Global Times 30 Jun 2022 -- US media reported a recent event in which a pair of Chinese satellites evaded a probe attempt by a US space surveillance satellite, with Chinese experts saying on Wednesday that the US spying activities in space pose enormous security threats to many countries including China. They said the US media's hyping of Chinese satellites' defensive measures is a vile trick.
Iranian Court Confirms Long Prison Sentence For Espionage For French National Briere RFE/RL 29 Jun 2022 -- A court in Iran has denied an appeal by French citizen Benjamin Briere and confirmed his prison sentence of eight years and eight months for espionage, a charge he and his family have rejected.
PM Bennett Holds Security Assessments with the Mossad and the ISA Israel - Prime Minister 28 Jun 2022 -- Prime Minister Naftali Bennett held detailed security assessments with the Mossad and the Israeli Security Agency (ISA), today , which included reviews of operations in the past year. The Prime Minister also summarized the foundations for the continuation of vital activity by the security services in the foreseeable future on all fronts.
Bulgaria Expels 70 Russian Embassy Staff Accused Of Working Against Sofia's Interests RFE/RL 28 Jun 2022 -- Bulgaria has ordered 70 Russian diplomatic staff out of the country, claiming that they have been working against Sofia's interests.
Bulgaria Expels 70 Russian Diplomats Sputnik 28 Jun 2022 -- Bulgaria will expel 70 Russian diplomats who were engaged in "espionage," Prime Minister Kiril Petkov said on Tuesday.
Bulgaria expels 70 Russian diplomats: PM People's Daily 29 Jun 2022 -- Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov has announced Tuesday that his country has decided to expel 70 Russian diplomats as special services have identified the diplomats as people who work against Bulgaria's interests.
DNI Haines Speaks at the Activation of the National Space Intelligence Center Director of National Intelligence 27 Jun 2022 -- The Space Force activated the National Space Intelligence Center which will be led by its newest unit Space Delta 18, during a ceremony on June 24 at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.
Controversial Confucius Institutes Returning to U.S. Schools Under New Name VOA 27 Jun 2022 -- Confucius Institutes, the controversial Beijing-backed language and cultural learning centers — most of which were closed throughout the United States after being designated a foreign mission by the State Department — are rebranding and reopening, according to a report by the National Association of Scholars.
Ukraine Says It Uncovered Russian Spy Network Involving U.S.-Sanctioned Lawmaker RFE/RL 25 Jun 2022 -- Ukrainian authorities said they have uncovered a Russian spy network involving Ukrainian lawmaker Andriy Derkach, who has previously been accused by Washington of being a Russian agent.
Ex-Air Force officers accused of spying for China indicted CNA 24 Jun 2022 -- Two retired Air Force officers have been indicted on national security charges after being accused of accepting bribes from a known Chinese spy to set up an espionage ring in Taiwan.
In Major Security Shakeup, Iran Replaces IRGC Intelligence Chief RFE/RL 24 Jun 2022 -- Hossein Taeb, a hard-line cleric, was the intelligence chief of Iran's powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), the elite branch of the armed forces, for over a decade. But in a surprise move, the IRGC announced on June 23 that it had removed Taeb from his prominent post.
Former U.S. Military Pilot Admits Acting as Paid Agent of China and Lying on National Security Background Forms US Dept. of Justice 23 Jun 2022 -- A former U.S. Army helicopter pilot-turned-civilian-contractor pleaded guilty in federal court today, admitting that he acted as an unregistered agent of China and accepted thousands of dollars from representatives of the Chinese government to provide aviation-related information from his defense-contractor employers. He also pleaded guilty to making related false statements during national security background checks.
Man Who Acted as Russian Agent Sentenced to Federal Prison Term US Dept. of Justice 22 Jun 2022 -- Hector Alejandro Cabrera Fuentes, 36, a Mexican citizen who had resided in Singapore and spent significant time in Russia, was sentenced yesterday in the Southern District of Florida to four years and one day in prison for acting within the United States on behalf of a foreign government without notifying the Attorney General.
Detained Mossad agents planned to kill Iran's nuclear scientists: Judiciary official Press TV 21 Jun 2022 -- An Iranian judiciary official says the three agents working for the Israeli Mossad spy agency, who were arrested in April, were planning to assassinate Iranian nuclear scientists.
Australia Urged to Intervene in Long-Running Wikileaks Extradition Case VOA 21 Jun 2022 -- Lawyers for Wikileaks founder Julian Assange are urging the Australian government to do more to gain the release of the Queensland-born activist. Assange is to be extradited from Britain to the United States to face espionage charges, in a move approved by the British government late last week.
US military group in talks to purchase Israel's blacklisted Pegasus spyware Press TV 19 Jun 2022 -- The US military contractor L3Harris Technologies has entered talks with the Israeli regime's notorious NSO Group surveillance technology to buy its spyware tools despite it being blacklisted by Washington.
Russia Allegedly Housing FSB Officers In Unoccupied Apartments In Ukraine's Kherson RFE/RL 17 Jun 2022 -- Russia is allegedly housing members of the Federal Security Service (FSB) in a Moscow-controlled region in southern Ukraine in unoccupied, privately owned apartments, according to a local official.
UK approves Julian Assange's extradition to US, fuels worldwide outrage Press TV 17 Jun 2022 -- The UK government has approved the extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the US to face criminal charges, despite an original British judge ruling that he should not be deported due to risk of suicide and a warning by his lawyer that he still remains a risk.
Dutch Authorities Say They Stopped Russian Spy From Infiltrating International Criminal Court RFE/RL 17 Jun 2022 -- Dutch authorities say they have prevented a Russian spy posing as a Brazilian intern from infiltrating the International Criminal Court (ICC) as it investigates war crimes allegedly committed by Russian troops during Moscow's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
AIVD disrupts activities of Russian intelligence officer targeting the International Criminal Court AIVD 16 Jun 2022 -- The AIVD prevented a Russian intelligence officer from gaining access as an intern to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. The person in question works for the Russian Military Intelligence Service GRU, but he used a Brazilian cover identity to travel from Brazil to the Netherlands.
Disinformation: Commission welcomes the new stronger and more comprehensive Code of Practice on disinformation European Commission 16 Jun 2022 -- Today, Commission welcomes the publication of the strengthened Code of Practice on Disinformation. The 34 signatories, such as platforms, tech companies and civil society followed the 2021 Commission Guidance and took into account the lessons learnt from the COVID19 crisis and Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine.
Questions and Answers: Strengthened Code of Practice on disinformation European Commission 16 Jun 2022 -- Since the first Code was published in 2018, the often complex and sophisticated phenomenon of disinformation has continued to evolve rapidly, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
Former University of Arkansas Professor Sentenced to a Year and a Day for Lying to Federal Agents About Patents in China US Dept. of Justice 16 Jun 2022 -- An Arkansas man and former University of Arkansas professor was sentenced today to 12 months and a day in prison followed by one year of supervised release on one count of making a false statement to the FBI about the existence of patents for his inventions in the People's Republic of China (PRC).
Japan's defense minister hopes for "smoother" sharing of military intelligence with S. Korea People's Daily 15 Jun 2022 -- Japan's Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said Tuesday he expected a key military pact made with South Korea on sharing information between them would become smoother under South Korea's new administration.
Amid Rising Tension with Beijing, US Creates 'China House' VOA 15 Jun 2022 -- Amid tensions in bilateral relations, the U.S. State Department is creating a new entity known as "China House" to better track what China is doing around the world.
Exclusive: China captures powerful US NSA cyberspy tool Global Times 14 Jun 2022 -- China captured a spy tool deployed by the US National Security Agency, which is capable of lurking in a victim's computer to access sensitive information and was found to have controlled global internet equipment and stole large amounts of users' information, according to a report the Global Times obtained from the National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center exclusively on Monday.
Exclusive: Report reveals how US spy agencies stole 97b global internet data, 124b phone records in just 30 days Global Times 13 Jun 2022 -- The US military and government cyber agencies have remotely stolen more than 97 billion pieces of global internet data and 124 billion phone records in the last 30 days, which are becoming a major source of intelligence for the US and other "Five Eyes" countries, a latest cybersecurity report showed.
Report: Israel pushing Biden to remove Pegasus spyware from US blacklist Press TV 10 Jun 2022 -- Israeli regime officials are pushing the US government to remove the controversial spyware company NSO Group from the Department of Commerce blacklist, according to reports.
China sets up hotline with financial rewards for 'national security' tip-offs Radio Free Asia 09 Jun 2022 -- China's ministry of state security has set up a public hotline to encourage people to report each other for threatening "national security," a broadly defined concept that criminalizes overseas contacts and fund-raising, criticism of the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and peaceful political opposition.
China's top security authority institutionalizes rewarding citizens for reporting activities that endanger national security Global Times 08 Jun 2022 -- China's Ministry of State Security (MSS) on Monday released a regulation on rewards for citizens reporting activities that endanger national security who will be given an incentive based on the effectiveness and contribution of their reports, with the maximum amount exceeding 100,000 yuan ($15,000).
Former CIA director personally observed waterboarding of prisoner: Court testimony Press TV 05 Jun 2022 -- A former US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) director, who had overseen a secret prison in Thailand, personally observed interrogation sessions in which inmates were being tortured.
Suspect In Litvinenko Poisoning Dies After Reportedly Contracting COVID-19 In Moscow RFE/RL 04 Jun 2022 -- Businessman and ex-KGB agent Dmitry Kovtun, one of two Russian men accused by Britain of poisoning Kremlin critic Aleksandr Litvinenko in London in 2006, has died after contracting COVID-19 in Moscow, Russian state media reported on June 4.

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