The Bulletin's Frontrunner February 23, 2001
President Concerned By Espionage But Expresses Confidence In Freeh, FBI.
NBC (2/22, story 2, Gregory) reported last night, "The President expressed confidence in FBI Director Louis Freeh in light of the arrest of agent Richard Hanssen for allegedly selling secrets to the Russians. And insisted the espionage case will not derail US-Russian ties." Bush was shown saying, "We ought to be concerned about espionage in America. In the statement I made the other day, I said we will be diligent. We will find spies, and we will prosecute them." The New York Times (2/23, A1, Johnston) reports, "For a number of years, American intelligence officials have had evidence that Russia had a significant pipeline from the United States government." The Times adds, "Counterintelligence officials said the unwillingness of the F.B.I. director, Louis J. Freeh, to require wider use of polygraphs to screen employees for possible security problems was partly responsible for making it more difficult to reveal the work Mr. Hanssen is accused of doing as a spy for Moscow." The Times continues, "President Bush, at a news conference, expressed concern today about the reported penetration of the F.B.I. by a spy but also said he had confidence in Mr. Freeh. 'He has made the right move in selecting Judge Webster to review all procedures in the F.B.I. to make sure that this doesn't happen again,' President Bush said. USA Today (2/23, Johnson) reports, "Although authorities have declined to say who provided the critical Russian documents that helped expose Hanssen, the exchange occurred near the time high-ranking Russian diplomat Sergey Tretyakov defected with his family from his post with the Russian Mission at the United Nations. Tretyakov's defection was not reported until last month, but authorities have confirmed that it took place in October." USA Today continues, "'When you read the (FBI's) affidavit, it's obvious somebody walked in and gave them the "Ramon" file after Nov. 17,' says John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, a Washington-based security policy group." The Washington Post (2/23, A1, Masters) reports, "Until FBI investigators targeted Robert P. Hanssen as a possible Russian spy late last year, they focused on a covert CIA officer who now may be cleared as a result of Hanssen's arrest, sources close to the case said yesterday." The Post adds, " Now that Hanssen has been charged as a Russian spy, authorities are attempting to determine whether to clear the initial suspect and put him back to work. That decision has not been reached, sources said." The New York Times (2/23, Risen) reports, "For nearly a dozen years, a former State Department official, Felix S. Bloch, has lived in limbo, dismissed from his senior diplomatic post and investigated on suspicion of being a Russian spy, yet never charged with any crime." The Times adds, "In an affidavit filed in support of its case against Mr. Hanssen, the government says Mr. Hanssen tipped off the K.G.B. that Mr. Bloch was under scrutiny, and the affidavit quotes from a letter the government says Mr. Hanssen wrote to the Russians discussing his decision to do so." In an op ed in the New York Times (2/23) Robert M. Gates writes, "A careful spy who knows all of the tricks of the counterintelligence world can be very difficult to identify." Gates adds, "We must be realistic. In any democratic society, counterintelligence is decidedly difficult and will never be perfect. It wasn't perfect in the totalitarian Soviet Union, and it certainly won't be in America." USA Today/AP (2/23) reports, "FBI spokesman John Collingwood said Thursday that recommendations made in the inspector general's 1997 report were implemented and had a direct bearing on the arrest of Hanssen this week." The AP adds, " At the same time, Attorney General John Ashcroft promised to search for answers to one of the most troubling questions in the case: Why Hanssen's alleged 15 years of spying for Moscow was never detected at the FBI. Former CIA and FBI Director William Webster, at Ashcroft's request, will convene a panel to review FBI security procedures and recommend changes that could prevent future incidents." The Washington Times (2/23, Gertz) reports, " Federal investigators obtained hundreds of letters and computer messages they believe were sent between FBI Special Agent Robert P. Hanssen and his Russian handlers that are providing leads to other possible spies, U.S. officials said yesterday." The Times continues, "The spy letters form the basis of the espionage charges against Mr. Hanssen, and excerpts of some of the most important were disclosed in an FBI affidavit made public Tuesday." The Times adds, "The letters reveal a highly technical relationship between Mr. Hanssen and the KGB and later its successor, the SVR. Much of the exchanges are about spying techniques - secret drop-off and pickup locations where documents and money were left. The letters also reveal Moscow's spying priorities. In 1991, the KGB wanted to know U.S. intelligence 'plans to respond to domestic turmoil in the Soviet Union' and new U.S. communications intelligence efforts. " The Times also reports, "Investigators are tracking down a former U.S. government official who was mentioned by Mr. Hanssen in a 1991 letter to the KGB as a possible spy recruit. The FBI affidavit stated that 'B' had recommended the recruitment of 'a particular named individual who he described as an "old friend."' The FBI said Mr. Hanssen had been a friend of the person since he was a teen-ager."
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