KaPo yearbook: Estonia expelled Russian 'diplomats' in 2014
In its 2014 yearbook KaPo, the Estonian Internal Security Service, said Estonia expelled Russian intelligence officers posing as diplomats last year.
KaPo did not give out further details, or even say if there was more than one such case.
The yearbook said that despite the changes in tactics and the development of technology, there is still a need for the recruitment of human sources. “The main targets are sill politicians, servicemen, diplomats, opinion leaders (including journalists), specialists in computing and communication, and employees of the special services.”
Foreign intelligence services are interested in the parliamentary elections and the formation of the new government in Estonia in 2015, as well as foreign military contingent on Estonian soil and the steps taken by NATO and the EU.
“As formal relations with Russia continue to become cooler, more intense espionage is to be expected under non-traditional cover. The influence operations directed at Estonia are also expected to intensify,” the yearbook continued.
KaPo Director General Arnold Sinisalu said the events in Ukraine crucially changed the way Estonia and all of Europe understands Russia. “Russia has attempted to split NATO and EU partners by a policy of divide and rule, while the West is actually showing greater unity following the collapse of the Soviet Union,” he said.
Speaking about Eston Kohver, a KaPo official held in prison in Moscow, Sinisalu said Russia violated international law. “September 2014 posed a challenge for our service. One of our staff has not been with us for over seven months now. The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) kidnapped Eston Kohver and is still holding him in custody,” Sinisalu said.
Download the English-language version of the yearbook here.
Editor: J.M. Laats