The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has released a video to recruit Russians unhappy with the war in Ukraine and life in Russia and ask them to act as Washington's confidants.
The video, released Tuesday by CNN, is cinematic in style and, according to the network, is a new effort to capitalize on what US intelligence officials believe is an "unprecedented" opportunity to convince dissatisfied with the conflict to help head it off.
The material has been released on a new CIA channel on Telegram, a very popular social network in Russia where unfiltered news is included. The video, which ends by offering instructions on how to contact the CIA anonymously and securely using the Tor browser to access the "dark web" and communication encryption tools, has also been posted on other platforms and social networks. , including YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
The short video shows a Russian official and his wife at home with a child, apparently having a difficult life and wondering if it matches their dreams. "Is this the life I've dreamed of? Is this the path I've chosen?" the recording asks in the first person, suggesting that the Russians can act to make things better, providing intelligence to the CIA, while still being patriots.
“The CIA wants to know the truth about Russia and we are looking for reliable people who can tell us that truth,” the agency writes in its video. “Your information may be more valuable than you think,” she says.
The CIA said it hoped to make contact with people who work in intelligence, diplomacy, science and technology and the like, and was interested in all kinds of intelligence, including political and economic.
CIA officials involved in the project told the network that the Russian invasion of Ukraine has created a historic opportunity "for the Russians to come to us and deliver the information that the United States needs." “We wanted to convey to the Russians in their own language that we know what they are going through,” added the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive project.
The official insisted that the video is not intended to be incendiary or unrest among the general population, mindful that Russian President Vladimir Putin still enjoys a high level of support, but rather targets people who can be undecided
The Russian response after the publication of the video was not long in coming. Russian intelligence services monitor CIA attempts to recruit citizens through social media, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said.
"I am convinced that the intelligence services adequately monitor this space, based on the fact that the CIA and other Western intelligence services do not reduce their activities in our country," he said in his daily telephone press conference.
However, Peskov admitted that he is unaware of the initiative by the CIA, which has released a video to recruit Russians unhappy with the war in Ukraine and life in Russia and asks them to act as Washington's insiders.
"Honestly speaking, we haven't looked at that yet. I don't have any information about it," he said.
The video, posted by CNN, features a cinematic format and, according to the network, is a new effort to capitalize on what US intelligence officials believe is an "unprecedented" opportunity to win over Russians dissatisfied with the conflict. to help stop it.
