Suspected Russian spies charged in US

RobitTV

Ten alleged members of a Russian spy-ring have been charged in the US with acting as foreign agents.

The suspects are accused of posing as ordinary citizens, some living together as couples for years.

They were charged with conspiracy to act as unlawful agents of a foreign government, a crime which carries up to five years in prison.

A Russian foreign ministry spokesman said the allegations were contradictory.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov later said Moscow expected Washington to provide an explanation over the the spying row, Russia's Interfax news agency reports.

Alleged intercepted messages in court documents suggest they were asked to find information on topics including nuclear weapons, US arms control positions, Iran, White House rumours, CIA leadership turnover, and political parties.

The US Department of Justice says eight of the suspects allegedly carried out "long-term, 'deep-cover' assignments" on US soil, working in civilian jobs so as not to arouse suspicion.

They were allegedly trained by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) to infiltrate policy-making circles and collect information, according to court papers filed in the US court for the southern district of New York.

They were told to befriend US officials and send information using various methods to Russian government handlers.

US officials said the spy-ring was discovered in a "multi-year investigation" by FBI agents who posed as Russian handlers and gleaned information from two of the suspects.

jack presley

One with an Irish passport as well apparently. Good that we're still exporting something! Irish passports seem to be the passport of choice for this kind of thing.