SVR Archives - Robert Lansing Institute

Russia’s SVR Turns Vienna into a Hub for Signals Intelligence Operations

Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service of Russia has transformed Vienna into a hub for electronic and satellite intelligence operations. Moscow has turned the Austrian capital into a center of satellite espionage, using diplomatic facilities to…

March 16, 2026Austria, Russia, SVR

Intelligence ops National Security Propaganda and Disinformation Psyops

Manufacturing Nuclear Panic: Russia’s “Dirty Bomb” Claims as Information Warfare

The press service of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) published a press release accusing the United Kingdom and France of intending to covertly supply Ukraine with nuclear weapons and their…

February 25, 2026Russia, SVR, Ukraine

Intelligence ops National Security

Russian Espionage Targeting NATO Unmanned Systems in Europe

In Portugal, a 23-year-old man has been charged with espionage and attempting to sell stolen information from NATO military computer equipment to the Russian Embassy in Lisbon. The incident occurred…

February 20, 2026GRU, NATO, Russia, SVR

Intelligence ops National Security

From Scandal to Security Threat: Protecting High-Value Individuals Named in the Epstein Files from Russian Intelligence Targeting

The release of millions of “Epstein files” has created a large, searchable reputational dataset that foreign intelligence services can exploit for recruitment, coercion, and disinformation—even when the underlying material does not…

February 13, 2026Epstein, GRU, Russia, SVR, USA

Corruption Governance Intelligence ops National Security

The Kremlin’s Battle for Budapest: Russia’s Hybrid War to Keep Orbán in Power

The Kremlin has begun aggressively defending the regime in Budapest ahead of the April 2026 elections. It is evident that Moscow aims to strengthen its influence in Hungary and destroy the…

November 10, 2025Hungary, Russia, SVR, USA

- Intelligence ops

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán Escalates His War Against the Opposition with Russian Intelligence Support

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán continues his campaign against the opposition party Tisza, with backing from Russian intelligence, in an effort to maintain power and neutralize Brussels’ political influence over Hungary’s…

October 8, 2025Hungary, Russia, SVR

Intelligence ops

How Tradecraft Failures Blew Moscow’s Media-Cover Spies

After the expulsion of Russian intelligence officers operating under diplomatic cover, the Kremlin has increased the insertion into European countries of intelligence officers working under journalistic cover. This reflects a shift…

October 3, 2025Austria, Russia, SVR

Intelligence ops National Security Propaganda and Disinformation

SVR Director’s Attack on riedrich Merz: Why the Kremlin Reached for the “Nazi” Label

Russia’s foreign-intelligence chief, Sergey Naryshkin, amplified the Kremlin’s long-running trope that today’s European leaders are steered by “Nazi” ideas—this time aiming the charge at German Chancellor riedrich Merz. The timing and…

September 4, 2025Germany, Naryshkin, Russia, SVR, USA

Conflict Geopolitics Peacekeeping

Russia’s Pressure on Armenia After the Armenia–Azerbaijan Peace Breakthrough and Naryshkin’s Yerevan Overtures

Armenia and Azerbaijan initialed a U.S.-brokered peace deal on August 8, 2025, with Washington and Brussels framing it as a milestone that still requires formal signing and ratification. Moscow reads this as a…

August 21, 2025Armenia, Azerbaijan, Naryshkin, Russia, SVR, USA

Geoeconomics Intelligence ops National Security

Africa’s New Overseers: Inside Russia’s Covert Gold Empire”

Russia’s involvement in building a gold refinery plant in Mali is not just an economic move — it’s a strategic maneuver involving sanctions evasion, geopolitical influence, and shadow financing of military operations in Africa and…

June 18, 2025gold, GRU, Russia, SVR, Wagner Group

SVR