Russian Spies in the European Union

They appear as good neighbors, friendly and approachable. Some have families with children and live quiet, civilian lives. Others are students attending universities in various countries, working as scientists. In Russia, they are considered the elite among spies. Vladimir Putin proudly calls them “Wunderkinder” – “children who perform miracles.” The so-called “illegals” are Russian intelligence agents who live under false identities: often for years and sometimes decades in the country where they are assigned, gathering information and carrying out tasks different from those conducted by embassies and consulates. Illegals lack diplomatic protection and face long prison sentences if discovered.

According to investigations by WDR and NDR, German security services believe that Russia will increasingly use these “covert” spies in the future – and that such hidden spies are already active in Germany. “Yes, we assume there are various illegals in Germany,” said Thomas Haldenwang, president of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV). “This instrument, this very complex system of illegals, seems to still be in use.” The Office for the Protection of the Constitution works “very intensively” to uncover such cases, Haldenwang said.

Decades of Espionage

Since the end of the Cold War, Russian “illegals” have only been uncovered in Germany in one instance: In October 2011, a married couple using the false names Heidrun and Andreas Anschlag was arrested. They were sentenced to prison and later deported to Russia. They claimed to be Austrians, grew up in South America, and spied in Germany for decades. The new WDR-NDR podcast “Die Anschlags – Russlands Spione unter uns” (The Attacks – Russia’s Spies Among Us) sheds light on this case. Journalists followed the couple’s spy trails and investigated how they prepared for their mission in Germany, how they remained undetected for many years, and what led to their eventual capture. For the first time, the most important source of these spies spoke out: a Dutch diplomat who had been leaking NATO secret documents for years.

Discovery of Multiple Agents?

Since the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, several covert Russian spies have been uncovered in the Netherlands, Greece, Norway, and Slovenia. This includes a Russian who claimed to be Brazilian, studied at universities in Ireland and the USA, before moving to the Netherlands. He began his internship there – at the International Criminal Court.

A university researcher was arrested in Tromsø, Norway, who dealt with the geopolitical importance of the Arctic region. He also claimed to be a native Brazilian. In December 2022, a married couple with children was arrested in the Slovenian capital, Ljubljana. This couple is believed to have followed the work of other Russian “illegals” in Europe and supported them financially by supplying them with money. During the search, investigators found surprisingly large amounts of cash. The German Office for the Protection of the Constitution helped Slovenian authorities in uncovering this spy couple’s contacts and their travels to Germany. One of the arrested, who claimed to be of Namibian origin, visited an IT fair in southern Germany. His wife, allegedly Argentine, ran a gallery and worked, among other things, with artists from Germany.

Haldenwang: “Vigorous Counteraction”

According to the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Russia conducts extensive espionage activities in Western Europe: “We assume that Russia uses a full arsenal of every espionage tool imaginable, including the killing of opponents,” Haldenwang said. For several weeks, European intelligence services have been increasingly warning about sabotage and fires that could be caused by Russian spies. There have already been several arrests in Poland. Two people were arrested in Bavaria on suspicion of espionage. They are also accused of planning sabotage to disrupt military support for Ukraine.

The head of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution says that Germany is “in the focus of the intelligence work of Russian services.” According to him, information on defense policy, arms policy, support for Ukraine, or sanctions against Russia is of interest. “Everything needs to be clarified, and the appropriate efforts are being made in this regard,” said Haldenwang. “We will vigorously oppose this.”

Strategies for Detection

“Ilegals” are, according to security circles’ estimates, more important for Russia now than ever. Since the Russian attack on Ukraine, hundreds of Russian embassy staff have been expelled from Europe. This significantly reduced the number of people who could spy for Russia with the protection provided by diplomatic immunity. According to security services’ predictions, Russia will increasingly rely on illegal spies who, unnoticed, are already in Europe. Meanwhile, Russian “illegals” are also infiltrating European intelligence communities. Projects are developing strategies to detect such spies, for example, by recognizing certain patterns in the legends or false biographies of Russian spies.

A Long Tradition

The espionage program of “illegals” in the USSR was established immediately after the founding of the Soviet Union in 1922. Later, the KGB sent spies with false biographies around the world to gather information, spy on dissidents, and opposition figures. After the end of the Cold War, this espionage was continued by the new Russian foreign intelligence service, the SVR. Additionally, the Russian military intelligence service GRU has again used “illegals” for several years. European security services believe there is also a type of “Light Illegal” program in Russia, where spies are trained for a shorter time and given less detailed false biographies so that they can be employed more quickly – disguised, for example, as students or businessmen.

Sending Messages

According to information from WDR and NDR, Russia still uses a classic tool for spies operating illegally, which looks like a relic from the Cold War: shortwave radio communication. In this way, tasks are passed on to spies. These messages, in principle, can be heard by anyone, making it difficult to identify the true recipients. The messages are encoded and can only be read with the right decryption code. Since the beginning of the aggression against Ukraine, the activity of these radio stations attributed to Russia has increased. This is an indicator that perhaps spies already in position are receiving new tasks, or the number of illegals has significantly increased in recent years.