Embassy in France Embassy ● Stale

Intelligence Online reported on February 20th that “after being drastically reduced in the wake of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, France’s diplomatic staff in Russia has been boosted by the arrival of seasoned strategic experts, including new ambassador Nicolas de Rivière who is expected in Moscow on 24 March.” Intelligence Online also stated on X that “France is beefing up its embassy in Moscow following Russia’s tit-for-tat expulsion of 40 French agents and diplomats in retaliation for the expulsion of 41 Russians from the Paris embassy between February and July 2022. Nicolas de Rivière, a career diplomat, is to replace ambassador Pierre Lévy who retired last summer. De Rivière will take up his new post in March. The arrival of this French foreign ministry heavyweight, who is seen as tougher on Russia than his predecessor, reflects France’s determination to stand firm with Moscow.”

Intelligence Online published this article on September 24th saying that “in the battle between the French and Azerbaijani intelligence services, both sides have detained an individual potentially linked to an agency of the opposing side. Russia’s decision to request the extradition of the Azerbaijani individual on attention-grabbing accusations of terrorism has made the situation doubly complicated for the French authorities. While Azerbaijan has again extended the detention of French citizen Martin Ryan, whom it accuses of spying for the French external intelligence agency, the DGSE, a French court is examining the case of an Azerbaijani citizen who took refuge in France and is presented as a former collaborator of the Baku domestic intelligence service, the DTX. More specifically, the French magistrates are examining a request from Russia for his extradition. According to an 11 September Paris court of appeals decree, which Intelligence Online has read, the Russian public prosecutor sent a formal request for extradition of the individual to the French ministry of justice on 21 May. The request was transferred by Interpol’s office in Moscow, then via a diplomatic note from the Russian embassy in Paris on 29 May.”

SWI reported on July 24th that “French police have arrested a Russian man suspected of planning to destabilize the Olympics, the Paris prosecutor’s office said on Wednesday, just days before the Games begin. The 40-year-old man was detained on Tuesday after police raided his house at the request of the Interior Ministry, the prosecutor’s office said in a statement. The evidence found at his home raised “fears of his intention to organize events likely to cause destabilization during the Olympic Games,” it said. Relations between France and Russia have been deteriorating for months as President Emmanuel Macron is a prominent critic of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and a strong supporter of the Kyiv government. French authorities have repeatedly flagged suspected Russian disinformation campaigns, while Russia has arrested a French researcher in the country on espionage charges. The arrested man has been placed in pre-trial detention and could face up to 30 years in prison, the statement said. Russia’s embassy in Paris said it had not received official notification of the detention. “We proactively asked them for clarification. We will seek a reaction,” it said in a statement. The Olympics kick off on Friday with a spectacular but logistically fraught opening ceremony along the River Seine. France has rolled out its biggest ever security operation to safeguard the Games, which take place against a backdrop of wars in Ukraine and Gaza.”

Media Zone reported on February 20th that “the Moscow City Court sentenced the former adviser to the Russian Embassy in France, diplomat Igor Kondratsky (Игорь Кондрацкий), Media Zone found out. Kondratsky was tried under the article of high treason (Article 275 of the Criminal Code). The verdict was announced on February 16. “Media Zone” contacted the press service of the court, but within 24 hours they had not announced the punishment imposed on the diplomat. An hour and a half after the release of this news, the joint press service of the capital’s courts clarified that Igor Kondratsky was sentenced to 18 years in a maximum security colony. He was also stripped of the rank of Reserve Colonel. The detention of Igor Kondratsky became known at the end of August, when his preventive measure was extended. Two months earlier, the court decided to place him in a pre-trial detention centre. According to investigators, Kondratsky transferred information constituting a state secret to a representative of a foreign state. It is not known exactly which country the information was transferred to. However, the Moscow Times previously drew attention to the fact that Kondratsky was in Ukraine shortly before the criminal prosecution; he himself is a native of Kiev. The convict worked as an adviser to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1992 to 2010 and received “income from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.” Kondratsky was also mentioned among the participants in the 2009 international report “Iran’s Nuclear and Missile Potential”, and his dissertation for the degree of candidate of political science was written on the topic “The problem of nuclear non-proliferation in South Asia (political science aspects)”.”

On Monday it was announced that Germany expelled 40 Russian diplomats from the Russian Embassy in Berlin for “suspected links to spy agencies” and France followed along by expelling 35 Russian diplomats suspicious of being involved in espionage activities.