Epstein Secrets

intelligence coups through the eyes, and mind-set, of their KGB handler might provide some historical context for the Snowden defection. So I invited Cherkashin to lunch at Gusto, a quiet Italian restaurant, located near the Chekhov Theater in Moscow. Cherkashin, a tall thin man with silver hair, showed up p

ontext for the Snowden defection. So I invited Cherkashin to lunch at Gusto, a quiet Italian restaurant, located near the Chekhov Theater in Moscow. Cherkashin, a tall thin man with silver hair, showed up promptly at 1:00 p.m., wearing an elegant gray suit and dark tie. He walked with a spry step. Because he

s.) The Russian intelligence services continued recruiting mercenary spies in the NSA for the duration of the Cold War. The KGB suc- cesses included Robert Lipka, a clerk at the NSA in the mid-1960s, who was caught in a sting operation by the FBI and sentenced to eighteen years in a federal prison. Ronald Pelt

then cited the signature line from the movie Zhe Usual Suspects “The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist.” Cherkashin thinly smiled and said “CIA denial [of moles] certainly helped.” HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020275 124 In view of such past successes of the Russian intellig

mous spy delivered 27 computer discs containing hundreds of secret documents revealing the sources and methods of American intelligence. According to Cherkashin, it was the largest haul of top secrets documents ever obtained by the KGB (although it was only a small fraction of the number of top secret NSA, De

ors.) The Russian intelligence services continued recruiting mercenary spies in the NSA for the duration of the Cold War. The KGB successes included Robert Lipka, a clerk at the NSA in the HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020324 173 mid 1960s, who was caught in a sting operation by the FBI and sentenced to 18 years in a fed

201 “Tt was the information in his head that we wanted.” Cherkashin said that as KGB rarely got access to any NSA officer, it was worth the risk. So he was given $5,000 in cash and a plane ticket to Vienna, where he w

the NSA would have received its full attention after he contacted Russian officials in Hong Kong. While the tactics of the SVR may have changed since Cherkashin retired, its objectives remained the same. And the NSA remained its principal target. Nor is there any reason to doubt that it still measures success

Russian Prison,” New York Times, June 4, 1992 “He was found dead of...” Edward Jay Epstein, “The Spy Wars,” New York Times, September 28, 1980 . “Robert Lipka, a clerk...”—See Robert Lipka Appendix A “ David Sheldon Boone...”—See David Boone, Appendix A “Harold Nicholson, the CIA’s deputy...”— Elizabeth F