The Alpine nation’s top intelligence agency says at least a third of Russia’s 220 accredited officials are likely spies.
Switzerland’s top intelligence agency, the Federal Intelligence Service (FIS), says Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine has turned the country into a hotbed for espionage, with at least a third of 220 officials that Russia has accredited to the country suspected of being spies.
While Russian espionage elsewhere in Europe and North America had been weakened by the expulsions, Russian agents continued to operate in Bern, the Swiss capital, and in Moscow’s mission to the United Nations in Geneva, say the FIS in its annual report.
“In Europe, Switzerland is one of the states with the largest number of Russian intelligence officers operating under diplomatic cover, in part because of its role as host to international organizations,” he said in the report released on Monday .
The UN has its European headquarters in Geneva and the city is also home to several UN agencies and international organizations. Hundreds of diplomats are stationed in the city or gather there regularly for key meetings.
“Of the approximately 220 people accredited as diplomatic or techno-administrative staff at the Russian missions in Geneva and Bern, probably at least a third work for the Russian intelligence services,” FIS chief Christian Dussey told a conference in press
The Swiss secret service, which has 450 employees, said the war in Ukraine forced it to extend its surveillance to areas that had previously received little attention, such as Turkey and India, because Russia had been using companies from these countries for purchase.
While China is also believed to have dozens of spies in its diplomatic missions in Switzerland, the number is significantly lower than Russia’s, the agency said.
China’s agents rely more on non-diplomatic cover, the FIS said, and are described officially as mostly scientists, journalists or business executives.
Dussey said he expected China’s intelligence operation to become stronger in Europe, backed by increasing resources.
“We are doing our best, on the ground, to show the lines” that should not be crossed, the FIS chief said, adding that the spying operations had a negative impact on the international importance of Geneva and damaged Switzerland’s credibility.
Asked about the report at the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s regular press conference on Tuesday, spokesman Mao Ning rejected the Swiss findings and said China opposed spying. He also called for an end to what he described as “baseless smears”.
The FIS also noted that the security landscape had been affected by the growing rivalry between the world’s major powers, which had been intensified by Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine.
“Russia has destroyed the rules-based peace order in Europe,” the FIS said.
“The effectiveness of international forums to maintain peace and security, such as the UN or the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), has continued to decline; there are no signs of a stable new world order.”
