As more cold war era tactics from Russia show up in recent headlines, a culmination of strategy mistakes by some key nations sees us on a sliding scale towards widespread war. The intelligence community has worked tirelessly to gain a preventative edge, while nations at peace prosper. This work demands above average skill, commitment and versatility, along with innovative thinking. So, do we just leave it to be professionals?
Just like the story of Jack Debaut in “From Terror to Valor: Echoes and Shadows”, resilience is an utter necessity in often adverse and dangerous situations. Digital subversion has made the job of the intelligence community inherently more complex. Boundaries blur, and in the grey area, our perception of the world can be subject to malicious influence.
Despite cold war tensions returning, where Russian activity in Europe and the United States has dramatically increased, a new impact has arisen. Suspiciously, individuals with great analytics skills can also deceive themselves into believing that they alone have the answers. Are they correct, or is it the impact of digital subversion?
A good example of this was the journalist from the Wall Street Journal, Evan Gershkovich. Russian security services detained him in March 2023; where he was on a journalistic assignment to the city of Yekaterinburg in Russia. The Sverdlovsk Regional Court convicted him of espionage, without prosecutors offering actual evidence.
Is Evan Gershkovich a US Spy as Russia Claim?
Mr. Gershkovich decided as an American journalist that working in Russia was a safe practice. He stayed in Russia to do his job. Ignoring the facts on the ground and from the US authorities, he became a target. Russia has their people in the United States that they would like back. In cold-war spirit, they created leverage in detaining and falsely convicting Mr. Gershkovich of being a spy.
From Terror to Valor: Echoes and Shadows, available on pre-order for September 11th release.
I can say with 99.9% certainty he is not. Here’s my rationale. Russia broke from normal trial procedure for espionage and allowed journalists to cover the trial. Despite being denounced by the Wall Street Journal, and the US Government as a “sham trial”, it still went ahead. US media also covered it, effectively making Mr Gershkovich a political artefact for trade.
If this sounds harsh to you, then you can see how much dedication, flexibility and resilience are required to be an actual employee of the intelligence community. Despite no reasonable person accepting Mr. Gershkovich as having anything to do with US intelligence, US intelligence will now be involved in his case.
US Intelligence Community Involvement
The actions of the Russian authorities to get what they want require engagement and response from the US intelligence community. Their signal to the United States is clear in their orchestration. By grabbing a US journalist, not presenting actual evidence of espionage, and then convicting Mr. Gershkovich, Russia now has leverage. Combine this with Russia allowing media to cover the sham trial, it’s clear that Russia wants one of their own back from the United States.
What happens from here is unclear. Mr. Gershkovich does not have powerful patrons lobbying for his release like Julian Assange had. However, he clearly is a pawn in a larger game, and the United States has someone Russia wants. A cold-war era trade for Mr. Gershkovich has become his best hope. As his best hope now lies with the US Government, the US Intelligence community will work with other areas of government to try to make this happen.
About the Author
John is a versatile author known for his gripping fiction narratives in the thriller, action, and suspense genres. With a background as a journalist since 2016, and expertise in cloud technologies as an engineer; John brings a unique blend of storytelling prowess and technical acumen to his work.
