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New US sanctions on Belarus; the 72 patients who die every day from the pandemic in Moscow; the expulsion from Colombia of two members of the Russian diplomatic corps, accused of espionage …
(Read: Ecopetrol presents its investment plan for 2021)
Some Moscow media have already picked up the news of the Ivan Duque government’s accusations that Russia has been carrying out political and economic espionage work in different regions of the country.
Quoting EL TIEMPO, they point out that Russian intelligence agents Alexander Paristov and Alexander Belousov recruited informants and were collecting key data on mineral resources, electricity grids, oil infrastructure and hydroelectric plants.
In fact, they point out that with Colombia, it is the sixth online case of expulsion of Russian diplomats in 2020, after they were removed earlier this year by Bulgaria, Austria, Norway, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. In all cases, Russia took mirror measures: it expelled the same number of officials from those countries from its territory.
For Russia, in fact, it is not news that they accuse him of espionage, despite the fact that it has already come out to deny the accusations of Bogotá.
In fact, experts in the field believe that what is new is that Colombia has become aware of the espionage – of which only street photos and videos of Russian agents have circulated – and that it has decided to protest.
THE SEALED REPORT
However, EL TIEMPO had access to a sealed report detailing the so-called ‘Operation Enigma’, which exposed the espionage.
The most relevant data is that it was British and American agents who alerted Colombia to the arrival in the country, since 2017, of at least 23 ‘diplomats’ with atypical profiles and ties to Russian intelligence agencies.
At the same time, the Minister of Industry and Commerce of the Russian Federation, Denis Manturov, was in Colombia on a whirlwind visit.
According to Colombian intelligence officials, while Manturov reestablishes the purchase of Colombian beef and seeks business in the energy, aviation, rail and pharmaceutical sectors, the agents began to extend a network of informants in public and private companies.
Dozens of encrypted messages started going out from Colombia directly to different areas of the Kremlin. In fact, the information was not only about Colombia. It was also about activities of other intelligence agencies and allied governments, regarding issues such as Venezuela and terrorist groups.
Among the leaked data is that Ecopetrol was on the Russians’ target list. In addition, that phase II of ‘Operation Enigma’ will be to prosecute members of the network of informants who sold information in exchange for juicy sums of cash.
“In addition to other crimes, treason is configured,” said an insider. Reporters from this newspaper contacted one of the informants within this plot, and he gave information on the marked Russian interest in the oil company, mostly state-owned.
According to him, Russia has been deploying a global macroeconomic strategy that could be affected by long-term plans of several oil companies, including the Colombian company.
PUTIN’S GAS
“Environmentalists are not the only ones who are opposed to fracking (hydraulic fracturing to extract oil and gas) in Colombia and other countries. This abundant gas would be a direct competition for that of Russia, which supplies Europe, a market that gives the government of Vladimir Putin economic, but also political power, “the source explained.
And he delivered documents from the United States where there is talk of a Russian plot behind the anti-fracking protests in some countries. One of them, from 2018, was made by the Committee on Science, Space and Technology of the United States House of Representatives.
“Russian-sponsored agents funneled money into the United States for environmental organizations in an attempt to discredit energy companies in a negative way and disrupt domestic energy markets,” the report says.
There was also a failed attempt to penetrate the Banco de la República. And although the scope of the espionage is being known so far, it is taken for granted that Venezuela played a key role.
“The espionage information about Colombia came exclusively through Venezuela, but it is clear that another floodgate was opened by Russia,” said a source.
And he confirmed a key fact: people close to these Russian officials were taken out of the country when the pandemic began, through routes that passed through Venezuela and Iran.
INVESTIGATIVE UNIT
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