Intelligence: The Culture Of Espionage

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March 4, 2009: In Romania, an army sergeant and a Bulgarian man were arrested and charged with spying for Russia. The sergeant was paid by his Bulgarian handler to steal classified military documents. Espionage, mainly for commercial purposes, has become a big business in Romania, and the Balkans in general. Companies and criminal gangs pay well for information about government and business matters, propelled by Romania's privatization of government owned properties. Romania's entry into the European Union and NATO brought with it more foreign aid, and there was a market for inside information on that. But Romania entering NATO attracted Russian spies, because there is a certain amount of information sharing among NATO members, and Russia saw Romania's culture of espionage as a good place to get at NATO secrets.

 

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