Alwaght-Russia has expelled an alleged Western double agent whom it accused of working for Latvian and American intelligence agencies for over two decades gathering military information for them .
The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) declared as a ‘double agent’ senior inspector of Latvian civilian aviation Andrejs Dudarevs known as “agent Thomas,” banning him from entering Russia for 10 years, Russian media reported on Sunday .
According to Russian broadcaster NTV channel, Dudarevs worked for intelligence agencies for 22 years, during which he first spied for Latvia and then for the US, gathering classified data relating to the Russian Defense Ministry .
In 2011, Dudarevs reportedly attempted to contact Russian security services, and three years later, he met with FSB representatives asking for a job in the field of military aviation in exchange for obtained information about his Western colleagues and for some financial benefits .
The Latvian national provided Russian security services with reports about the Balnet radio-radar system deployed by the US to the Baltic region to monitor Russian airspace; however, after the FSB checked the obtained information, it turned out to be outdated NATO plans. The Federal Security Services described Dudarevs as “a poorly trained spy .”
The announcement comes just months after another Latvian national, Alexei Holostov, was expelled from Russia last November after admitting to collecting and passing intelligence information to other parties. Holostov said at the time of the exposure that he worked for Latvia’s special services, “which operate under the guidance of the CIA .”
Tensions between the West and Moscow have grown over the past year amid the crisis in Russia’s neighboring Ukraine. The US and its European allies accuse Moscow of destabilizing Ukraine and have imposed a number of sanctions against Russian and pro-Russia figures. Russia, however, rejects the accusation .
The Western military alliance, NATO, has over the past year increased its presence and conducted several exercises in Eastern Europe, including in the Baltic region, amid the Ukrainian crisis. In 2014, NATO forces held some 200 military exercises, with the alliance’s General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg having promised that such drills would continue .
