Читать книгу The Secrets of Spies - Weldon Owen - Страница 7

8

In this book, we hope to reveal some of the secrets

of spying, and how and why spies go about their clandestine

business. Taking the classic dictionary definition, a spy is

a person employed by a government or other organization

to secretly obtain information from a competitor or enemy.

From the word “spy” we have the term “espionage,”

the practice of spying. Throughout the long history of

espionage, there have been many types of spy, performing

different functions according to the demands of their

masters. It is perhaps worth describing some of the key

roles adopted by spies so that we better understand the

development of espionage in the pages that follow.

It seems that most of us are fascinated by

spying. Library bookshelves are packed with

spy titles, both fiction and non-fiction, and

espionage is a constant staple of film and

TV programs. Spying’s enduring appeal lies

in its air of mystery and illicit nature; we are

irrevocably drawn to unraveling a forbidden

secret. Another attraction is the vicarious

pleasure we enjoy from idealizing the spy as

a hero. They become a lone individual taking

on the might of the state, armed only with

intelligence and cunning—a false move could

mean capture, interrogation, and even death.

INTRODUCTION

At the top of the espionage hierarchy are the case

officers or handlers, who find, recruit, and direct the

people doing the actual spying. Typically, they will operate

from one of their country’s overseas embassies, which

provide them with a convenient base—and diplomatic

protection if they are caught. On the downside, their

public profile makes them well known to the opposition,

who will attempt to track their every move and so limit their

effectiveness. By contrast, “illegals” are case officers who

operate entirely undercover, and if they are good and

sufficiently lucky they will remain undetected to develop

their agents to the highest level. One of the most capable

illegals was Soviet case officer Oscar Deutsch, who

recruited and trained the Cambridge spies in the 1930s.

The case officer will recruit people working in key

strategic areas such as the military, armaments industries,

and any high-technology operation where secrecy is

important. These individuals—prepared to betray state

secrets—are assiduously cultivated and become highly

prized assets. But the crown jewel of spy recruitment is

the double agent—a spy from one intelligence service

who is prepared to secretly work for an enemy intelligence

service. CIA agents Aldrich Ames and John Walker, Jr.,

both worked for the KGB, providing (among other things)

invaluable information about US intelligence operations

directed at the Soviet Union.

In the modern era, spies in the field are backed by

a small army of auxiliaries who provide logistical and

administrative support. Among these desk-bound