BRUSSELS
The Swedish Security Service, also known as SAPO, has accused one-third of the Russian diplomatic staff stationed in Sweden of being spies.
Wilhelm Unge, SAPO chief analyst, told Swedish reporters at the intelligence agency’s headquarters in Sweden Wednesday that Russian intelligence officers were "highly educated and often younger than during the Soviet era. They are driven, goal-oriented and socially competent."
Unge alleged that there were hundreds of Russian intelligence officers around Europe and the West. “They violate our territory every day…What's notable is that about one-third of the Russian diplomatic personnel are in reality not diplomats, but intelligence officers," he said.
He further alleged that Russian intelligence officers were mainly based at three locations in Sweden: the Russian embassy in Stockholm, the Consulate General in Gothenburg and a trade representation in Lidingo, an island in the inner Stockholm archipelago.
The Russian embassy in Stockholm declined to comment on the allegations when approached.
The Swedish Security Service released its 2014 report on counter-terrorism and espionage on Wednesday in which it described China, Iran and Russia as the “largest intelligence threat against Sweden.”
Sweden accused Russia in October last year of having a submarine beneath Swedish territorial waters. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov later accused the Swedish government of hyping-up tensions in the Baltic Sea region.
