British Spy Ring Uncovered in Moscow

The Federal Security Service of Russia (FSB) has unmasked British spies who worked under the cover of the British embassy in Moscow. The intriguing detail is that the "diplomats" were actively contacting some Russian non-governmental organizations and funding them. The finale of the operation conducted by the Russian counterintelligence in December of 2005 was aired by "Russia" TV Channel in Arkady Mamontov's feature "Special Correspondent" yesterday.

The TV feature names four officials from the British embassy in Moscow who had aroused special interest of the FSB in the course of its operative-search work. The "diplomats" slipped on running a "dead-letter box" using sophisticated spying equipment. All accusations have been supported by video-filmed evidence.

A Russian citizen who was recruited by the British secret service has also been exposed in the course of FSB's operative counterintelligence work. He has been arrested and is cooperating with the investigation.

One of the spies, Mark Dow, a second secretary in the British embassy, was coordinator of the Global Opportunities Fund attached to the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office and was basically guiding the activities of certain Russian non-governmental organizations. FSB operatives demonstrated a number of payment documents graphically testifying to M. Dow's regularly making payments, in particular to the so-called Moscow Helsinki Watch Group (23,000 pounds sterling) and Eurasia Fund (5,917 pounds sterling), as well as funding other projects in Russia.