Putin s secret army – and the chef he chose to run it
19 minutes to read
By: Larisa Brown
How did a former hot-dog seller turned billionaire restaurateur end up running an army of mercenaries on behalf of Putin? Meet Yevgeny Prigozhin, the man behind the shadowy Wagner Group that conducts black ops across the globe – from assassinations to election-rigging and cyberwarfare. Larisa Brown investigates the former penniless convict who ended up becoming one of Russia s most powerful men.
Last summer I was at the Russian ambassador s residence on Billionaires Row in Kensington, resisting the temptation to devour a plate of gold-wrapped Ferrero Rocher chocolates while anxiously awaiting the arrival of Vladimir Putin s top diplomat in London. I had previously met Andrei Kelin s predecessor, Alexander Yakovenko, 66, on a number of occasions in the aftermath of the Skripal poisoning in Salisbury and had become accustomed to his masterclasses in the art of obfuscation.
2021 Peace and War Virtual Summit to feature pair of discussions
Even amid polarized partisan division on everything from coronavirus relief to infrastructure proposals, Congress does have at least one bipartisan bill. It addresses Chinese competition in technology, and will get scrutiny Wednesday.
The same day, the Virtual Peace and War Summit at Norwich University will address the same U.S.-China technology race in two online sessions. The John and Mary Frances Patton Peace and War Center is presenting the summit, in the seventh week of an eight-week run.
In Congress on Wednesday, the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on the Endless Frontier Act, co-sponsored by Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., the Senate majority leader and Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind. The measure, first proposed in 2020, calls to allocate $110 billion over five years to advance U.S. technology to better compete with China, particularly developing semiconductors and investing in quantum computing.
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Apr. 12, 2021
Iranian intelligence services used fake Instagram accounts to try and lure Israelis to meetings overseas, with the goal of harming or kidnapping them, the Shin Bet security service and the Mossad spy agency said Monday.
The security services said the accounts impersonated women, some supposedly working in tourism, and approached Israelis who have business ties abroad and often travel to other countries for meetings.
A PDF version of this document with embedded text is available at the link below:
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ve
THE DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL
UNUM
JAL INTELLIGENCE
UNITED
STATES OF AMERICA
ANNUAL THREAT ASSESSMENT
OF THE US INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY
Office of the Director of National Intelligence
April 9, 2021
April 9, 2021
INTRODUCTION
This annual report of worldwide threats to the national security of the United States responds to Section 617 of the FY21 Intelligence Authorization Act (P.L. 116-260). This report reflects the collective insights of the Intelligence Community (IC), which is committed every day to providing the nuanced, independent, and unvarnished intelligence that policymakers, warfighters, and domestic law enforcement personnel need to protect American lives and America s interests anywhere in the world.