With the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, Russia lost many of its valuable spies due to the mass expulsion of diplomats from Western countries. In response, the Kremlin turned to an old but effective tactic — the use of “illegals” — undercover agents who operate under the guise of normal jobs. Spies work in civilian roles such as journalists, businessmen, art dealers, and others.
These agents conduct 90% of Russian intelligence operations, using their connections and access to significant events to gather intelligence. Their tasks include destabilizing situations in Western countries, infiltrating protest movements, and opposition organizations.
One striking example of the work of “illegals” was the prisoner swap between Western countries and Russia on August 1, where American journalists and Russian human rights activists were exchanged for assassins and spies.
Among those exchanged were Artem and Anna Dultsev, who posed as Argentinians and successfully ran a startup and gallery in Slovenia, as well as Spanish journalist Pablo Gonzalez, also known as Pavel Rubtsov.
The replacement of diplomats with illegals allows Russia to operate more covertly, as these agents do not have diplomatic protection, making them harder to detect. “Russia has invested heavily in ‘illegal’ agents who do not enjoy diplomatic protection,” noted Marc Marginedas, a correspondent for the Spanish newspaper El Periodico. “They provide them with a personal alibi that is very difficult to track. Latin American countries, where control and regulation during the provision of citizenship to foreigners are not very strict, are very useful for this purpose.”
An example of this is the operations involving Pablo Gonzalez, also known as Pavel Rubtsov. Although he worked as a reporter for media outlets such as DW and VOA, in reality, according to Richard Moore, the head of the British MI6, he was gathering information on Russian opposition groups and attempting to destabilize Ukraine ahead of the full-scale invasion.
Gonzalez was detained by Polish authorities in February 2022 on charges of espionage for Russia, which he denied. Despite this, his exchange during the prisoner swap on August 1 and his welcome by Putin in Moscow confirmed his true role.
“Putin, welcoming these people with honors at the Moscow airport and promising them jobs and medals, was sending a message to future spies that the Russian state will not abandon its spies,” Marginedas said, highlighting the importance of such operations for Russian intelligence.
“Illegals,” with their ability to travel freely, pose serious challenges to counterintelligence. “This is a renaissance for illegals,” said Oleksandr Danylyuk, an expert in Russian and Soviet special services, in an interview with VOA. “Historically, it was very difficult to travel abroad. These spies can travel, live, join governments, and businesses,” Danylyuk said.
Danylyuk noted that part of their value lies in the fact that millions of Russians — and foreign Kremlin sympathizers — can travel freely without suspicion.
“They can travel to Silicon Valley and steal secrets; they can recruit people. Why use diplomats?” asks Danylyuk, who is an associate fellow at the London-based Royal United Services Institute, a defense think tank.
