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☆ Kremlin insiders are baffled over why Prigozhin was flying around Russia after his failed uprising: 'He's not a fool'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin is presumed dead after his business jet crashed on Wednesday. Prigozhin, who was ousted after a failed mutiny, was en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg. Kremlin insiders told Meduza that they were baffled over why he was still doing business in Russia. The plane, which had seven passengers and three crew members on board, was traveling from Moscow to St. Petersburg, TASS added. AdvertisementAdvertisementBut the mutiny failed, and Prigozhin, who had spent months publicly criticizing Moscow's military strategy in Ukraine, was apparently exiled to Belarus .

Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Prigozhin, Meduza, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Ian Petchenik, Petchenik, Sir John Sawers Organizations: Kremlin, Service, Moscow, Concord Catering, Reuters, BBC Radio Locations: Moscow, St . Petersburg, Russia, Wall, Silicon, Russian, Tver, Ukraine, Belarus, Africa

☆ Prigozhin's plane may have been brought down by a 'device' on board: former MI6 boss
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Former MI6 chief John Sawers suggested a bomb could have been on board Prigozhin's plane. Several theories exist as to how the plane crashed, killing all those on board. "I would have thought there was some device on board," Sawers told the BBC. AdvertisementAdvertisementSpeaking about it on BBC radio's "Today," former MI6 chief John Sawers suggested a device on-board could have been the culprit. In video released by Prigozhin Press Service, Yevgeny Prigozhin is seen in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, Saturday, June 24, 2023.

Persons: John Sawers, Sawers, Yevgeny Prigozhin's, Vladimir Putin, Anthony Brickhouse, Insider's Azmi Haroun, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Associated Press Sawers, Putin, Dmitry Utkin, Wagner Organizations: BBC, Service, Wagner, Embraer, Kremlin, Reuters, Prigozhin Press Service, Prigozhin Press, Associated Press Locations: Wall, Silicon, Moscow, Rostov, Don, Russia

☆ The plane carrying Prigozhin seemed fine on radar until a 'sudden downward' drop in its last 30 seconds
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A plane crash in Russia on Wednesday killed 10 people on board. It plummeted suddenly after appearing fine on radar, a flight-tracking expert told Reuters. The plane plummeted more than 8,000 feet from its cruising altitude of 28,000 within approximately 30 seconds, he added. "Whatever happened, happened quickly," Petchenik said, according to the news agency. President Joe Biden suggested on Wednesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin was likely behind the crash, though he didn't speak with certainty.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin, Wagner, Prigozhin, Ian Petchenik, Petchenik, John Sawers, Joe Biden, Biden, I'm, Frank Gardner Organizations: Wednesday, Reuters, Service, Embraer, Financial Times, Telegram, Financial, BBC, CNN, Russia's Federal Security Service, BBC's Locations: Russia, Wall, Silicon, Moscow, St . Petersburg, Kuzhenkino, Tver Oblast, Russian

☆ MI6 leader says Putin is likely feeling the pressure because Prigozhin — a 'creature' he 'utterly created' — turned on him
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Rebecca Cohen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

MI6 leader said Vladimir Putin is likely feeling the "pressure" of Yevgeny Prigozhin's rebellion. "Prigozhin was his creature, utterly created by Putin, and yet he turned on him," Richard Moore told Politico. Last month, Prigozhin's Wagner Group staged a brief mutiny against Putin's military leaders before backing down. "Prigozhin was his creature, utterly created by Putin, and yet he turned on him," Richard Moore told Politico. On Wednesday, Prigozhin took another oblique shot at Putin by criticizing his ongoing war in Ukraine, even as the Kremlin tries to keep the rogue leader quiet.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Yevgeny Prigozhin's, Prigozhin, Putin, Richard Moore, Prigozhin's Wagner, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Alexander Lukashenko, Putin's Organizations: Politico, Service, Prigozhin, Kremlin Locations: Wall, Silicon, Belarus, Moscow, Belarusian, Russia's, Russia, Ukraine

☆ A British spy chief who goes by the code name 'C' says MI6 channels 'more resources to China than any other mission'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Kwan Wei Kevin Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

MI6 chief Richard Moore told Politico that the British spy agency views China as a key concern. "We now devote more resources to China than any other mission," Moore told Politico. The spy chief previously said that the "rise of China is the single greatest priority for MI6." Moore, officially codenamed "C," made these remarks to Politico after delivering his second public speech as MI6 chief at the British embassy in Prague. During his first public speech as MI6 chief, Moore said the "rise of China is the single greatest priority for MI6."

Persons: Richard Moore, Moore, Politico's Anne McElvoy, Alex Younger Organizations: Politico, Service, Privacy, BBC, UK Security Service MI5, Street Journal Locations: China, Wall, Silicon, Prague, Russia, Ukraine, Cuba

CNN —Belarusian forces will hold joint military exercises with Wagner fighters near its border with NATO-member Poland, Belarus’ Defence Ministry said. Wagner fighters arrived in Belarus following a short-lived mutiny by the private military group last month. “The Armed Forces of Belarus continue joint training with the fighters of PMC ‘Wagner,’” the defence ministry said in a statement. At the beginning of July, Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko invited Wagner forces into Belarus to help train his country’s military. The invite came shortly after the failed armed insurrection by Wagner forces against Moscow, which Lukashenko was credited with helping diffuse.

Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, PMC ‘ Wagner, ’, Alexander Lukashenko, Lukashenko, ”, Vladimir Putin, Putin Organizations: CNN, NATO, Belarus ’ Defence Ministry, Armed Forces, PMC, Reuters Locations: Belarusian, Poland, Belarus, Moscow, Russia, Asipovichy, Minsk, “

More than two weeks later, the Kremlin disclosed that Mr. Prigozhin and other Wagner leaders had met with Mr. Putin for three hours in the days after the rebellion ended. “I think he probably feels under some pressure,” Mr. Moore said of Mr. Putin, speaking at the British ambassador’s residence in the Czech capital. Mr. Prigozhin is known to have spent several days in Russia afterward, and video posted on the Telegram messaging app on Wednesday appears to show him in Belarus. “He is clearly under pressure,” Mr. Moore said of Mr. Putin. Mr. Cleverly said the rebellion underscored the falsity of Mr. Putin’s assertions that Russia would be more committed to a long war in Ukraine than the West would be.

Persons: Richard Moore, Vladimir V, Putin, Yevgeny V, Wagner, Prigozhin’s, Prigozhin, “, Mr, Moore, “ Prigozhin, ” Mr, ’, James, ”, Vladimir Putin Organizations: Politico, Kremlin, Mr, Prigozhin, The New York Times, ”, Russian Army, British, Aspen Security Locations: London, Prague, Russia, British, Czech, “, Belarus, Moscow, Belarusian, Minsk, Ukraine, Rostov, Afghanistan, Russian

In the most detailed public account yet given by a U.S. official, the director of the C.I.A. offered a biting assessment on Thursday of the damage done to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia by the mutiny of the Wagner mercenary group, saying the rebellion had revived questions about his judgment and detachment from events. Speaking at the Aspen Security Forum, an annual national security conference, William J. Burns, the C.I.A. director, said that for much of the 36 hours of the rebellion last month, Russian security services, the military and decision makers “appeared to be adrift.”“For a lot of Russians watching this, used to this image of Putin as the arbiter of order, the question was ‘Does the emperor have no clothes?’” Mr. Burns said, adding, “Or at least ‘Why is it taking so long for him to get dressed?’”Mr. Burns’s remarks on the Kremlin’s paralysis during the uprising carried out by Yevgeny V. Prigozhin and his mercenary group built on comments a day earlier from his British counterpart, Richard Moore, the chief of MI6, who said the rebellion showed cracks in Mr. Putin’s rule.

Persons: Vladimir V, Putin, Wagner, William J, Burns, “, Mr, Burns’s, Yevgeny V, Prigozhin, Richard Moore, Putin’s Organizations: U.S, Aspen Security Forum Locations: Russia

☆ UK intel chief invites Russians 'silently appalled' by the Ukraine war to share their secrets and spy for MI6
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Britain's intelligence chief invited Russians who are upset with the Ukraine war to spy for MI6. Espionage has been a feature of the war, and the CIA even tried earlier this year to recruit spies. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Their secrets will always be safe with us, and together we will work to bring the bloodshed to an end. Espionage and intelligence gathering has long been a feature of Russia's war in Ukraine, and MI6 is not the first Western intelligence agency to try and recruit Russians.

Persons: Richard Moore, you'll, Richard Moore ,, Moore, Vladimir Putin's, Putin, Kyiv, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner Organizations: CIA, Service, Intelligence Service, Soviet, Western, NATO, Wagner Group Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Moscow, Prague, Soviet Union, Soviet, Russia

The chief of Britain’s intelligence agency, MI6, said on Wednesday that President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia had “cut a deal” with Yevgeny V. Prigozhin, the founder of the Wagner mercenary group, during Mr. Prigozhin’s failed rebellion last month. The Wagner leader staged a mutiny against Russia’s military last month, which saw his mercenary forces marching toward the capital before abruptly halting. More than two weeks later, the Kremlin disclosed that Mr. Prigozhin and other Wagner leaders had met with Mr. Putin for three hours in the days after the rebellion ended. “I think he probably feels under some pressure,” Mr. Moore said of Mr. Putin, speaking at the British ambassador’s residence in the Czech capital. He really didn’t fight back against Prigozhin; he cut a deal to save his skin using the good offices of the leader of Belarus.”

Persons: Vladimir V, Putin, Yevgeny V, Wagner, Prigozhin’s, Richard Moore, Prigozhin, “, Mr, Moore, “ Prigozhin, ” Organizations: Politico, Kremlin, Mr, Prigozhin Locations: Russia, Prague, British, Czech, “, Belarus

☆ Putin cut deal with Wagner ‘to save his skin,’ MI6 chief says in rare speech
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Nick Paton Walsh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Prague CNN —It was a rare moment when the publicly visible Kremlin matched the reality behind closed doors. And he had, it seemed, been welcomed into the Kremlin to meet Putin days later. Asked by CNN if Prigozhin was “alive and healthy”, Moore replied the Wagner leader was still: “floating around”, per his agency’s understanding. Yet the on-camera speech provided an opportunity for Moore’s expression to convey how shocking the weakness betrayed by Putin that weekend had been. “He really didn’t fight back against Prigozhin”, Moore said.

Persons: Wagner Yevgeny Prigozhin, Putin, Richard Moore, “ Prigozhin, ” Moore, Prigozhin, Moore, Wagner, Prigozhin ”, Alexander Lukashenko, “, ” Organizations: Prague CNN, Mi6, CNN, Belarus ”, Ukraine ”, Kremlin Locations: Prague, Moscow, Belarus, Denmark, Ukraine, United Kingdom, China, Russia, Iran

☆ MI6 Chief Calls on Russians to Spy for the U.K.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

What Burger King’s New Logo Says About Its StrategyBurger King revealed its first total rebrand in over 20 years as it looks to win back sales from rivals like McDonald’s and Wendy’s. A branding expert and reporter explain what Burger King is trying to say with its new logo. Photo illustration: Ryan Trefes

Persons: Burger, Ryan Trefes

Prigozhin’s rebellion posed one of the biggest challenges to the long rule of Russian President Vladimir Putin. In the video, a fighter seemingly addresses the Wagner leader as “Yevgeny Viktorovich,” Prigozhin’s first name and patronymic. The video is grainy and filmed in low light so CNN cannot definitively say the speaker is Prigozhin or when it was filmed. The fate of Wagner chief Prigozhin, meanwhile, remained subject to speculation. After the mutiny ended, Lukashenko claimed Prigozhin had arrived in Belarus.

Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, ”, Vladimir Putin, Yevgeny Viktorovich, ” Prigozhin, Alexander Lukashenko, Lukashenko, Prigozhin, Prighozin Organizations: CNN, Russian Ministry of Locations: Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, Belarusian, Africa, Prigozhin, St . Petersburg, Moscow

☆ British spies are using AI to disrupt Russia's shipments of critical weapons, but the technology will never replace real agents, UK spy chief says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

British spies are using AI to disrupt the supply of weapons to Russia, the UK MI6 chief said. Moore said the UK and its allies are racing to "master the ethical and safe use of AI." But he also acknowledged the experimental technology won't ever replace human agents. Will AI replace spies? "However swift and all-encompassing the advance of AI, some relationships are going to stay uniquely, stubbornly human."

Persons: Moore, Richard Moore, Stefan Rousseau Organizations: MI6, Service, Privacy, British, Ukraine Locations: Russia, Wall, Silicon, Prague, Ukraine, China

☆ MI6 chief makes open plea to Russians to spy for UK
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Nick Paton Walsh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Prague CNN —The head of Britain’s foreign intelligence service used a rare speech Wednesday to issue a plea to disaffected Russians to spy for the UK. They know in their hearts that Putin’s case for attacking a fellow Slavic nation is fraudulent,” he added. The MI6 chief told CNN that Prighozin is alive and at liberty following the group’s 24-hour mutiny against the Kremlin, and that Putin is clearly under pressure. Over the years they have developed a particularly gruesome reputation and have been linked to various human rights abuses. A CNN investigation in April found that Wagner has been supplying Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces with missiles to aid their fight against the country’s army.

Persons: Richard Moore, ”, Vladimir Putin’s, ” Moore, Moore, “, Putin, Wagner, Yevgeny Prighozin, Belarus –, Prighozin, Putin “ didn’t, –, ” Putin Organizations: Prague CNN, Kyiv, Russian, CNN, Kremlin, Prighozhin, Wagner Group, Central African, Rapid Support Forces Locations: Prague, Ukraine, Russian, Odesa, Belarus, Moscow, Denmark, Central African Republic, Sudan, Libya, Mozambique, Syria

☆ Putin Invited Wagner Leader Prigozhin 'for Tea' Recently, Says UK Spy Chief
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Vladimir Putin had tea with mutiny leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, the UK's spy chief said. However, after striking a deal with Wagner leader Prigozhin to call off the mutiny, Putin's actions have been mysterious. There are some things that even the chief of MI6 find a little difficult to try and interpret," Sir Richard said. Asked whether he believes Prigozhin is still alive, Sir Richard said that "as far we can tell Prigozhin is floating around," reported Sky News. Sir Richard, officially codenamed "C", compared the situation in Ukraine to the Prague Spring in 1968.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Richard Moore, Wagner, Sir Richard Moore, Putin, Prigozhin, he'd, Sir Richard Organizations: Service, Wagner Group, Sky, Sky News, Analysts, Kremlin Locations: Russian, Wall, Silicon, Prague, Czech Republic, Russia, Moscow, Belarus, St Petersburg, Ukraine

☆ AI cannot replace spies, UK intelligence chief to say
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PRAGUE, July 19 (Reuters) - The head of Britain's MI6 foreign spy service will detail why Russia is failing to achieve its military objectives in Ukraine and how artificial intelligence will not replace human agents when he delivers a rare public speech on Wednesday. In his first public speech, Moore warned that China and Russia were racing to master technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing, and this will again be a focus. Government and intelligence agencies globally are seeking to harness the power of AI, but Moore will say it will complement not replace humans who can uncover secrets beyond technology's reach. "The unique characteristics of human agents in the right places will become still more significant," he will say. "Human intelligence in the age of artificial intelligence will increasingly be defined as those things that machines cannot do, albeit we should expect the frontier of machine capability to advance with startling speed.”Reporting by Michael Holden; editing by Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Richard Moore, Moore, Michael Holden, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Secret Intelligence, Thomson Locations: PRAGUE, Russia, Ukraine, Africa, Iran, Prague, Czech Republic, Europe, China

☆ British Spies, Japanese Teens and a German Cop’s Wild Ride
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Mike Hale | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

It has been a quiet season for international television on American screens — nothing has grabbed attention on a “Squid Game” or “Downton Abbey” scale. But barely a day goes by, in the streaming age, without an interesting series washing up from some foreign shore. Here are four recent shows worth tracking down, from an elegant British thriller to a Chinese dramedy about a demon god and an immortal warrior who meet cute on the mortal plane. ‘A Spy Among Friends’Alexander Cary, a writer and executive producer on “Homeland,” wrote this six-episode spy thriller as a leisurely, literate, three- or four-dimensional game of chess. Tightly controlled yet somehow relaxed, Lewis gives a performance in which the coldblooded manipulator and the sentimentally loyal bro coexist at every moment.

☆ Iranian Insider and British Spy: How a Double Life Ended on the Gallows
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Farnaz Fassihi | Ronen Bergman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

But later, in an audio message broadcast by BBC Persian — it had been obtained through his family, according to Mr. Akbari’s brother — Mr. Akbari said the confessions were coerced. Iran says Mr. Akbari betrayed the country and traded state secrets for money. In the videos, Mr. Akbari said he was recruited in 2004 and told he and his family would be given visas for Britain. Iran has said that MI6 paid Mr. Akbari nearly 2 million pounds, currently about $2.4 million. Mr. Akbari met with the British ambassador in Tehran as part of his official job, and traveled to Europe often for business, Mehdi Akbari said.

☆ Iran Hangs Alireza Akbari, Dual U.K. Citizen Accused of Spying
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Sune Engel Rasmussen | Aresu Eqbali | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Alireza Akbari is the first known dual European citizen to be executed by Tehran in decades. Iran said Saturday it had executed a former high-ranking defense official and dual British citizen on charges of espionage, a move likely to exacerbate tensions with the West as the government is wrestling with nationwide protests. Alireza Akbari , a former deputy defense minister, was convicted of passing classified national-security information to the British foreign intelligence service, MI6, in return for more than $2 million in foreign currencies, the Iranian judiciary’s news agency, Mizan, said.

[1/2] A Brazilian flag is seen through broken glass following the anti-democratic riots, at Planalto Palace, in Brasilia, Brazil, January 10, 2023. What many banks point to is the assumed risk premium already built in to Brazilian real interest rates. But beyond Brazilian markets, the wide global markets calm surrounding the weekend events was equally curious. After all, Brazil is the 12th largest economy in the world and one of the biggest food and raw materials exporters. Among the 10 biggest risks it lists by likelihood is emerging markets political risks that threaten political institutions.

☆ Russian hackers launched attacks on 3 US nuclear research laboratories, says Reuters investigation
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( Bethany Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A group of Russian hackers targeted three US nuclear research laboratories. Russian hackers have used malware in phone apps to track Ukrainian artillery units. Russian hackers have used malware in phone apps to track Ukrainian artillery units and have sent propaganda to Ukrainian phones using simulators that imitate cell towers. Ukrainians have also reportedly tracked Russian generals making unsecured calls and used the information to launch attacks, Insider's Christopher Woody reports. In 2018, it was reported that the Russian military had been able to jam some US drones operating in the skies over Syria, seriously affecting American military operationsx

LONDON/WASHINGTON, Jan 6 (Reuters) - A Russian hacking team known as Cold River targeted three nuclear research laboratories in the United States this past summer, according to internet records reviewed by Reuters and five cyber security experts. Cold River has escalated its hacking campaign against Kyiv's allies since the invasion of Ukraine, according to cybersecurity researchers and western government officials. 'INTELLIGENCE COLLECTION'In May, Cold River broke into and leaked emails belonging to the former head of Britain's MI6 spy service. Reuters was unable independently to confirm why Cold River targeted the NGOs. "Google has tied this individual to the Russian hacking group Cold River and their early operations," he said.

☆ ‘A Private Spy’ Review: John le Carré, Letter by Letter
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Katherine A. Powers | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +2 min

‘A Private Spy,” a 630-page collection of the letters of John le Carré—David Cornwell in real life—is not as revealing of this secretive, canny man as Adam Sisman’s 2015 biography or as engaging as le Carré’s own episodic memoir, “The Pigeon Tunnel,” published a year later, partly in response to that “intrusive” biography. But what makes the letters so fascinating is their real-time immediacy, most palpable in the earlier years. Here is a man, not yet renowned as John le Carré, trying to find a way in the world, from student in England and Germany, to impoverished married man and father, would-be commercial artist, schoolmaster, diplomat (spy) and—before “The Spy Who Came in From the Cold”—middling novelist. Extensive though it is, it is only a selection of le Carré’s correspondence. They include, according to Tim Cornwell, a “‘tortured’ sixteen-page letter” le Carré wrote to Timothy Garton Ash on “the morality of spying,” and a couple of dispatches le Carré claimed he sent as a boy to Stalin, one advising the Supreme Commander of his support for opening a second front, the other complaining about his school.

☆ Released Australian adviser supports sanctions against Myanmar officials
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Australia should sanction Myanmar's military government and the regime's bankers, Sean Turnell, the Australian economist and adviser to deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi said in his first interview since being released from a Myanmar jail last week. He and three other foreigners were released as part of a mass amnesty of almost 6,000 prisoners last Thursday. Saying the Myanmar people's dreams have been "completely shattered", Turnell said he supported sanctions against regime officials and Myanmar bankers, without specifying which banks or financiers. Before court appearances Turnell would reunite briefly with fellow co-defendants including Aung San Suu Kyi. The Nobel Peace laureate faced widespread criticism from rights groups for defending Myanmar's generals against charges of genocide in 2019.

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