In late 2023, russian politicians claimed that the Soviet SMERSH counter-intelligence (CI) organization was being re-established. In early January 2024, an open-source image showed operatives apparently wearing SMERSH uniform patches, the UK Defense Intelligence reports.
An abbreviation of the russian phrase for “death to spies”, Joseph Stalin established the original organization which existed from 1941-1946. In the West, it became known via its fictionalized portrayal in lan Fleming’s James Bond books.
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It is unclear whether the new name indicates any substantive new capabilities or role for russia’s Cl function, or whether it is merely a re-badging. However, it provides another example of how the russian authorities consciously couch the war in the spirit of the Second World War, and their strong focus on the supposed infiltration of external threats into the country.
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