Russia claims bust could set back relations

RUSSIA angrily hit back yesterday at US claims that it had smashed a Moscow-organised spy ring, saying the accusations were reminiscent of the Cold War and could damage efforts to improve relations.

The US Justice Department said 10 “deep-cover” suspects, accused of infiltrating US policymaking for the Kremlin, had been detained on suspicion of seeking details of US nuclear weapons and foreign policy.

Five accused appeared in court in New York on Monday and some of the suspects are apparently Russian nationals. According to US documents, the spy ring had been under FBI surveillance for a decade. A key eleventh suspect, named as Canadian Christopher Metsos, 54, was arrested by Cypriot police at Larnaca airport as he prepared to board a morning flight to Budapest, officials said yesterday.

“In our opinion, such actions are groundless and pursue unseemly aims,” a Russian foreign ministry spokesman said. “It is highly deplorable that all of this is happening against the background of the reset in Russia-US ties.”

The arrests on Sunday in four northeastern US states came only three days after President Barack Obama described his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev as a “solid and reliable partner” at a White House summit.

“We do not understand the reasons that prompted the US Justice Department to come forward with a public announcement in the spirit of ‘spy sensations’ of the Cold War era,” the Russian foreign ministry spokesman said.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called for an explanation. “They did not explain what the matter is about. I hope they will,” Lavrov reportedly said during a visit to Jerusalem.

“The moment when it was done has been chosen with a special finesse,” he said. Russia-US ties have over the last months been marked by a public warmth unprecedented over the last years with Medvedev and Obama even sharing an outing to a burger diner during their summit.

The White House has yet to comment on the case which harks back to Cold War hostilities with the use of false identities and tales of buried money and hidden video cameras.

Irish and British authorities are also investigating reports that fake passports were used by members of the alleged spy ring, officials in London and Dublin said. Russia’s Foreign Ministry says some of the suspected spies arrested in the US include Russian citizens but insist they did nothing to hurt US interests. A ministry statement issued yesterday said Russia is counting on the US to show “proper understanding” taking into account the “positive character” of US-Russian relations.

Moscow has repeatedly accused Western powers of maintaining spying operations against Russia despite the end of the Cold War. Western powers also complain of Russian activity, especially in the commercial and scientific areas. Russian analysts said the timing suggested it was an attempt to undermine the “reset” which Obama’s administration has hailed as a major foreign policy achievement, citing Moscow’s support for sanctions against Iran and cooperation on Afghanistan.

“It is a slap in the face to Barack Obama,” said Anatoly Tsyganok, a political analyst at Moscow’s Institute of Political and Military Analysis. He predicted Russia would follow Cold War etiquette and uncover an equal number of alleged US spies.

But military analyst Alexander Golts said the scandal would be unlikely to deal a major setback to relations.

He said Obama’s administration would be eager to “soft-pedal the situation” to avoid damage to improved ties it sees as a foreign policy success.

Tatyana Stanovaya, political analyst at Moscow’s Centre for Political Technologies, said the allegations could widen a rift in Russia’s elite between advocates and opponents of better US ties.

Stanovaya said it could dent the authority of Medvedev, who is struggling to emerge from the shadow of Putin, his powerful prime minister, and has made engagement with Washington a hallmark of his presidency.

Putin’s spokesman said he had no comment on the spying allegations and said they were unlikely to be discussed during Putin’s upcoming meeting with former US President Bill Clinton in Moscow. The chief spokesman for the SVR foreign intelligence service, Sergei Ivanov, said: “There will be no comment.” After the 2001 arrest of FBI agent Robert Hanssen, accused of selling secrets to Moscow over 15 years and sentenced to life in prison, Washington expelled four Russian diplomats and ordered 46 to leave the country. Russia responded in kind.

In 2006, Russia accused British diplomats of running a James Bond- style spy ring and communicating with agents via an electronic device disguised as a rock. The next year, British officials said Russian spying was “at Cold War levels”.