Counterintelligence

A favourable wind had driven me to beautiful Bolougne-sur-mer  at the Channel. By accident there I discovered one of the many offshoots of the Ukraine war: a Russian vessel detained by the French government back in February 2022 .  The MV Baltic Leader is owned by the Russian  TransMorFlot LLC, which manages more than 30 vessels. On approaching there was no activity on board to be seen. Maybe the Russians were working inside, busy with launching a mini sub or small submersible ROV (R emote Operated Vehicles)... A captain I got talking to told me that the Russians were not allowed to disembark - though I wonder if that is actually the case. 

Founded in 1952 in Hamburg, the Atlantik-Brücke organisation is considered one of the most influential networks in Germany and has had its office in Berlin for many years. Its stated goal is a traditional US-focused policy.  It is a member of the New Traditions Network (NTN). From the NTN's spartan website it can be seen that it has its official headquarter  in the US Embassy in Berlin and is administered from there .  The Atlantik-Brücke can significantly raise now its profile due to the current crisis with Russia: From 1 June 2022, Julia Friedlander will become the new executive director in Berlin. In 2020, she had voiced clear criticism of the Russian government as co-author of the report „ Defending the United States against Russian dark money “. But she had already consistently positioned herself against Russia during her 2015 to 2017 work at the Office of Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes and 2017 to 2020 at the White House National Security Council. In 20...

Since March 2022, the  Predator drone manufacturer   General Atomics Europe GmbH has a representative office in Berlin. The office manager, Frank Sitta, is to push lobbying work at the German seat of government. His chances should be good, because as a long-standing member of the liberal FDP and its deputy chairman until 2021, he has the best connections in the government. Sitta reports directly to Stefan Klein, Head of strategic business development at the companys headquarter in Dresden.  The reorientation of German security policy since the Russian attack on Ukraine opens up new options, especially for the defence companies represented in Berlin. Well-known companies include Ariane Group , General Dynamics European Land Systems , German Naval Yards Kiel GmbH , the Swiss RUAG , Saab and Thales . More unknown but highly specialised are CTC Medical , partner of the US company Tactial Medical Solutions , the IT service provider genua GmbH , which among other things devel...