A Russian military spy posed as a Brazilian national in an attempt to get an internship at the International Criminal Court in the Hague, which is investigating war crimes allegations in Ukraine, the Dutch intelligence service said Thursday.
The General Intelligence and Security Service named the Russian intelligence officer as Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov and said that in April he used an elaborately-constructed identity to try to infiltrate the court. It published a letter that accompanied Cherkasov’s internship application. Writing under the alias Viktor Muller Ferreira, he spun a complex cover tale about growing up in poverty in Brazil and how members of his family suffered from heart problems.
Cherkasov was detained at a Dutch airport and deported back to Brazil, where he could face court proceedings.
“If the intelligence officer had succeeded in gaining access as an intern to the ICC, he would have been able to gather intelligence there and to look for (or recruit) sources, and arrange to have access to the ICC’s digital systems,” the General Intelligence and Security Service said in a statement.
That would have provided a “significant contribution” to the intelligence that the Russia is seeking. The spy might also have been able to influence criminal proceedings, the service said.
There was no immediate reaction from Moscow, though the attempted infiltration may indicate how seriously Russian President Vladimir Putin is taking allegations of Russian war crimes in Ukraine. The Kremlin has consistently denied the accusation, accusing the West of concocting a misinformation campaign against Russia.
– Kim Hjelmgaard
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Latest developments
►Japanese budget airline Zipair Tokyo is dropping the “Z” logo on its aircraft because it has become a pro-invasion symbol in Russia.
►NHL officials will not allow the Stanley Cup to travel to Russia or Belarus this summer, foregoing the unofficial tradition allowing players from those countries to travel there while spending a day with the cup. Officials informed both the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Colorado Avalanche of the decision.
►President Joe Biden on Wednesday asked oil producers to reduce the cost of gas, telling them in a letter that “amid a war that has raised gasoline prices more than $1.70 per gallon, historically high refinery profit margins are worsening that pain.”
Russia expected Kyiv to fall within 12 hours, Ukraine defense minister says
The Russian military expected Kyiv to surrender within 12 hours of the start of the invasion and the government to flee the capital within days, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said Thursday.
A document found on a Russian military officer killed in the invasion stated the Russian military objectives, Reznikov told CNN. The Kremlin expected the government would remain in the city less than three days, Reznikov said.
“Our partners in the different capitals of the world also were naive,” he said. “They told us that invasion was imminent, and you will fall. You only have 72 hours. That’s why they didn’t give us heavy weaponry.”
The invasion began Feb. 24 with Russian troops forming a long column as it rolled toward Kyiv. But when the invasion stalled, the Kremlin turned its attention to eastern Ukraine. Russian troops have made some headway there, but thoughts of a quickly completed “special military operation” have passed into history.
Alabama vet feared captured in Ukraine has ‘such a big heart’
Two U.S. military veterans from Alabama who went to Ukraine to help beat back the Russian invasion are missing and feared to have been captured by Russian troops or Russian-backed separatists, their family members said.
Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh, 27, of Trinity, Alabama, and Alexander Drueke, 39, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, haven’t been heard from for days after being in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine, near the Russian border, family members say.
Going to Ukraine was “not a decision he made lightly,” Huynh’s fiancée, Joy Black, told USA TODAY. “He’s got such a big heart and a lot of compassion for people in need.”
Huynh told her on June 8 that he would be unavailable for a few days. Black, 21, told USA TODAY she began to worry when she didn’t heard from him. She received a call on Monday from another soldier in his unit, saying the pair hadn’t met up at a rendezvous point during an operation. The caller told them other soldiers waited a day and conducted a drone search.
Whether they were captured isn’t known, said Black, whose family has since been in touch with the State Department and a Red Cross group in Ukraine that is also searching for the men.
“We’re just hoping for good news,” Black said. The State Department said it was monitoring the “unconfirmed” report and was in contact with Ukrainian authorities.
French, German, Italian leaders in Ukraine see ‘stigmata of barbarism’
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Premier Mario Draghi have arrived in Ukraine to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy today as they prepare for a European Union leaders’ summit in Brussels next week and a June 29-30 NATO summit in Madrid, Spain.
Macron Allies pledging further Ukraine support, US military leaders say
Dozens of countries are joining the U.S. in boosting their commitment to supporting Ukraine’s efforts to fight off the Russian invasion, U.S. military leaders said Wednesday after meeting with 50 allies in Brussels.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, appearing with Army Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, announced the Pentagon will send $1 billion in weapons to help Ukraine’s effort to blunt Russia’s offensive in the eastern Donbas region.
The package, the 12th approved by Biden since August, includes long-range, rocket-assisted artillery, Harpoon anti-ship missiles and more conventional howitzer cannons and ammunition. U.S. allies also pledged to continue backing the Ukrainian military.
“The international community is not allowing this unambiguous act of aggression by Russia to go unanswered,” Milley said.
The Ukrainians have said they more need long-range and conventional artillery, armored vehicles and anti-aircraft systems, Austin said.
“It’s never enough,” Austin said. “And so we’re going to continue to work hard to moving as much capability as we can, as fast as we can.”
– Tom Vanden Brook