Failed Covert Op Reveals a Compromised, Unstable Ukrainian Regime
A Bellingcat "journalist" is implicated; and a call to prayer
“I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”
-Jesus
Details are emerging that a Ukrainian covert operation to lure Russian pilots to defect not only failed but was turned upside down when Russian FSB figured out the game, flipped the script, and got Ukrainian agents to reveal sensitive information about their identities, sources, and anti-aircraft systems.
Erik Zimerman has been threading about it here:
The narrative pushed by the Russians also implicates Bellingcat “journalist” Christo Grozev in the operation. I use quotes around “journalist” because Bellingcat is essentially a Western intel propaganda front, not an actual independent publication, and those who write for it are plugged into the security apparatus beyond what is feasible for actual journalists.
Grozev, attempting to spin the story into a more neutralized tale of a mano a mano counter-intelligence duel, nevertheless seemed to implicate himself and confirm the Russian accusation of his involvement. Grozev says he was just a man making a documentary of the operation, and that the guys who ran it were simply “maverick ex operatives.”
I’ll let you be the judge of that. In my experience, an “ex” agent of any sophisticated intel organization has a 75% chance of being a “current” agent.
Since all this has come out, Zelensky has dismissed two more top officials, one of whom was the commander of the Special Operations Forces. Who knows how many others — lower level guys — have been compromised by the failed op and may have been let go.
The discovery that Ukraine was getting played during their own operation may have also spurred the firings-turned-suspensions I wrote about last week. Whatever is going on in Zelensky’s regime seems to be dire, and the help that Western agencies have provided through their “journalist” assets doesn’t seem to be working at all.
What Americans should learn from this should, at the very least, include:
Do not underestimate Russia, either its military capabilities or economic strength, no matter how buffoonish our media portrays them to be
Do not overestimate our own ability to run covert ops or help other countries run covert ops
We may spend hundreds of billions on the military, but do not overestimate our current military preparedness against real foes
There’s more to say on all of this, but now is simply a good time to say a prayer for peace. Peaceful terms have been a possibility from the beginning, but Ukraine, with the backing of certain Western leaders, have stymied every attempt. With thousands dead on the battlefield and more death to come, pray to the Lord God for peace, and to his son, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6) that through his mighty power he would bring an end to bloodshed and restore what has been broken.