NATO’s ‘sacrificial victim’ Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service Director on Navalny’s poisoning, protests in Belarus, and the coronavirus vaccine
In an interview with state media executive Dmitry Kiselyov, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Director Sergey Naryshkin offered his take on a range pressing international issues. First and foremost, he weighed in on the poisoning of opposition figure Alexey Navalny. But he also found time to mention the coronavirus, political turmoil in Belarus, and the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Here’s what he said, in a nutshell.
On Navalny’s poisoning. At the time when blogger Alexey Navalny was in Russia, no toxic substances were found in his tests. But what happened next, in Germany, that’s the question. We have no concrete evidence of the involvement of foreign special services in this provocation, but there is circumstantial evidence. Around a year ago, a meeting was held in one of the NATO countries (not in Germany) to decide how to support the opposition movement in Russia, which has completely shrunk. And there they discussed the question of a “sacrificial victim.” This is verified information. They’ve already used this tool in Ukraine and in former Yugoslavia. The formula of so-called “Novichok” is known and it wouldn’t be difficult for any country to make it.
On everything else. We have no evidence that the coronavirus was produced artificially. The U.S. is accusing Russia of preventing them from getting the vaccine, because they’re trying to hide the flaws in their own healthcare system. In Belarus, Western opponents are using the standard tools of color revolutions, they’re undermining the situation. It’s nothing new. In Nagorno-Karabakh, we’re interacting with the special services of both Azerbaijan and Armenia. We see that Turkish intelligence is working there. But British intelligence isn’t there. The SVR made no claims that journalist Ivan Safronov passed information to the Czech Republic. Working with Putin is a great pleasure, he knows the specifics of our work.
You can read Sergey Naryshkin’s full interview here.
For more on these issues
- Not worth it Russia asks the EU nine questions about Navalny’s poisoning, arguing that he’s too unpopular to warrant assassination and, hey, maybe his own colleagues are responsible
- The Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict
- The Slavic brotherhood’s future Belarusian security expert Yahor Lebiadok breaks down military cooperation between Moscow and Minsk
- The Ivan Safronov case Here’s what we know so far about the arrest of a Russian journalist on treason charges
- Russia’s coronavirus vaccine: Assessing the risks and research behind ‘Sputnik V’
Summary by Grigory Levchenko
Translation by Eilish Hart
Why British?
Kiselyov asked Naryshkin about recently declassified Foreign Intelligence Service documents that revealed that Great Britain tried to draw Turkey into World War II. Kiselyov then pointed out that there are now close ties between London and Ankara, and asked to what extent their intelligence services are cooperating on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
The Safronov case
Kiselyov claimed that the Foreign Intelligence Service disseminated information about Russian defense correspondent Ivan Safronov cooperating with Czech intelligence (Safronov was arrested and charged with treason in July). He then asked Naryshkin to explain why these statements came from his department rather than the FSB. As it turns out, Kiselyov was misinformed; the Foreign Intelligence Service had never made such statements publicly. Rather, Safronov’s lawyer said that the FSB obtained this information from an unnamed SVR general.
Navalny’s poisoning
Alexey Navalny was on a flight from Tomsk to Moscow when he fell violently ill on August 20. The plane made an emergency landing in Omsk, where he was hospitalized in a coma. Two days later he was transferred to Germany for treatment; he remained in hospital until September 23. On September 2, German officials stated that Navalny was poisoned with a Novichok-type nerve agent. This was later confirmed by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Russia denies any involvement in the incident. Navalny is still undergoing rehabilitation in Germany, but plans to return to Russia.