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☆ An ex-KGB agent says every American that Putin can imprison is 'an asset that you can trade' as Moscow detains a US ballerina
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

AdvertisementEvery US citizen detained by Russia gives the Kremlin an "asset that you can trade," ex-KGB agent Jack Barsky said. Barsky, a former sleeper agent for Soviet intelligence in the 1970s and 1980s, told Fox News' Martha MacCallum on Monday that the practice of arresting Americans for this purpose is "nothing new." "That happened during Stalin's time, all the way through today. Because, you know, an American in prison is an asset that you can trade," said Barsky on MacCallum's "The Story." This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: Jack Barsky, Martha MacCallum Organizations: Fox News, Business Locations: Russia

☆ Putin's KGB past is key to grasping what he might do next in his failing Ukraine war, ex-spies say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

Putin's time in the KGB helps explain his worldview and brutal approach to warfare, ex-spies say. As Western intelligence agencies vie to stay two steps ahead of the Russian leader and get inside his head, peering into Putin's KGB past may offer clues on what he's thinking. "Putin's KGB background tells us a lot about how he thinks and how he sees the war. He is a creation of the KGB, and the KGB was a terrorist organization," John Sipher, a former CIA officer who served in Russia, told Insider. The Ukraine war has seen Putin and his propagandists make a series of assertions — ranging from plausible to preposterous — to justify Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

☆ Putin's time in the KGB taught him 'how to lie' and to think like a terrorist, ex-spies say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

Putin's time in the KGB helps explain his worldview and brutal approach to warfare, ex-spies say. A former KGB agent told Insider the biggest thing Putin learned from the Soviet spy agency was "how to lie." But ex-spies and Russia experts told Insider that Putin's time in the KGB — the Soviet Union's primary and much-feared security agency — played an instrumental role in shaping his mindset. "Putin's KGB background tells us a lot about how he thinks and how he sees the war. He is a creation of the KGB, and the KGB was a terrorist organization," John Sipher, a former CIA officer who served in Russia, told Insider.

☆ Ex-KGB sleeper agent on Russia's nuclear threats: 'Putin is not a suicide bomber'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Putin's repeated nuclear threats during the Ukraine war have raised alarm worldwide. But Jack Barsky, a former KGB agent, threw cold water on the possibility Putin would use a nuke. Putin could even decide to attack Ukraine with a tactical nuclear weapon if he gets desperate enough, Western governments and top Russia analysts have warned. "During the Cold War, it was pretty tense and we got pretty close to nuclear war a couple of times. Shortly after the war began, Putin claimed to have placed Russia's nuclear deterrent forces on high alert.

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