November
25, 2006: The recent opening of a $300 million headquarters for GRU (Russian
military intelligence), was but another demonstration of Russia's increased
interest in espionage. The 670,000 square foot GRU complex contains the latest
of everything for one of the smallest of Russia's intelligence services (the
domestic, and foreign, intelligence services are larger). Over the past five
years, the increasing flood of oil revenue has made it possible to rebuild the
intelligence services. After the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, there followed
a decade of decline for the intelligence services. The feared KGB became the
threadbare SVB, with domestic intelligence taken over by the FSB. Many Soviet
spies defected, and sold their secrets to Western intelligence agencies.
That's
all changed, party due to the current Russian leader, president Vladimir Putin,
whose previous career was as a KGB officer. But the Russians are also back to
their old Soviet ways, in that most of their espionage appears to be directed
towards stealing technology. In a way, this doesn't make a lot of sense. During
the Soviet period, the Russians did not recognize a lot of foreign patents, did
not export their best military technology, and stole Western technology they
needed. For the Soviets, stealing technology was a cheap way of keeping pace,
although always behind, with the West. Now Russia has Western quality
manufacturing capabilities and the ability to license most of what they need.
But there are some military technologies it cannot license. So whatever tech
Russia steals, it can now duplicate more effectively than during the Soviet
period. But it can't let any stuff, built using stolen technology, get
discovered by foreigners. Otherwise, the lawsuits and trade sanctions will
arrive, and cause more harm than the lack of foreign technologies.
What
the Russians are looking for are not so much patented technologies, as the
"trade secrets" that are not filed with the patent office, and given legal
protection from copying. Russia is especially eager to get military technology,
and intel on government and business decision making. But mainly, the Russians
are eager to get ahold of whatever foreign companies or governments do not want
them to see. So, after a ten year hiatus, Russia spies are again being found
everywhere, as they have been for the last 70 years. It's estimated that there
are at least a hundred Russian spies active in the United States, with most
other industrialized countries having 20-40 of them. Some are locals, working
for the Russians, the others are Russians pretending to be something else.
