Russians who are’silently shocked’ by Vladimir Putin‘s conflict in Ukraine have been asked to join the British intelligence community as spies.
In a rare public address, Sir Richard Moore persuaded individuals who were unhappy with the invasion and their country’s way of life to divulge their information in order to stop the slaughter.
The head of MI6 revealed that’many’ had already made this decision in the previous 18 months.
In a speech in Prague, he said: ‘There are many Russians who are silently appalled by the sight of their armed forces pulverising Ukrainian cities, expelling innocent families from their homes and kidnapping thousands of children.
‘They are watching in horror as their soldiers ravage a kindred country.
‘They know in their hearts that Putin’s case for attacking a fellow Slavic nation is fraudulent, a miasma of lies and fantasy.’
Sir Richard stressed ‘many Russians are wrestling with the same dilemmas and the same tugs of conscience’ as their predecessors did in 1968 when the Soviet tanks crushed the Prague spring uprisings.
‘I invite them to do what others have already done this past 18 months and join hands with us. Our door is always open,’ the veteran intelligence officer said.
‘We will handle their offers of help with the discretion and professionalism for which my service is famed.
‘Their secrets will always be safe with us. And together we will work to bring the bloodshed to an end.’
His appeal comes just months after the US foreign intelligence service posted a recruitment video on Telegram, telling Russians how to get in touch with them anonymously and securely.