Russian intelligence has ramped up its use of Argentina to channel the spies, illegal intelligence agents included, to other countries.
Moscow takes advantage of Argentina’s visa-free entry for 177 nations, and opportunity to obtain citizenship.
Lots of Russians arrive in Argentina in February 2023, to give birth there. A child born in Argentina becomes the citizen, and his parents can also get passports. The men coming from Russia raise particular questions, as they apply for Argentinean citizenship after the women, who claim to be their wives, give birth to a child.
The child’s parents can get a 10-year US visa. This makes it possible, eventually, to get cover documents and use them to go to Europe for intelligence operations. And that scheme does not require them to stay in Argentina.
After the child is born, most Russians get the papers and leave the country. Russians come to Argentina, give birth to children, sign up them as Argentines, leave a power of attorney, go back and do not return, migration agency head Florencia Carignano says. There’s a good chance that Russian intelligence is behind the agencies that provide for obtaining Argentinian citizenship. 10,500 Russian women entered the country in late pregnancy in 2022 alone. That poses a threat of infiltration by Russian intelligence, as its agents were unmasked in a series of revelations last year.
Authorities in Slovenia, for example, arrested two Russians with Argentinian passports accused of spying, on January 30.
South America is mostly used by Russian military intelligence to organize the work of sleeper agents. It is unlikely that all people who came from Russia to Argentina to get a residence permit are involved in intelligence. About 2%, however, are likely to be involved. Russian social media have launched a promotional campaign for relocation to Argentina to mask this Russian intelligence channel.
