The Kremlin has appealed to President Obama not to allow the arrest of an alleged Russian spy ring to spoil their new friendship.
In a statement notably lacking in any denial of the FBI’s allegations against 11 suspected “sleeper” agents, the Foreign Ministry in Moscow urged the United States not to let the scandal to colour its relations with Russia.
“We hope that the incident linked to the arrest of a group of people in the US on suspicion of spying for Russia will not have a negative impact on Russian-American relations,” a spokesman said. “We have taken note of the statement given by White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.”
Mr Gibbs said yesterday that the US did not believe the affair would affect President Obama’s “reset” policy of improving relations with Russia. The American President knew that the FBI was closing in on the spy ring when he held a White House summit meeting with Dmitri Medvedev, Russia’s President, last week.
Russia’s press ridiculed the whole affair with Tvoi Dhen, the popular tabloid, headlining its front-page report about the FBI operation with the word “Dimwits!” and a cartoon showing a secret service agent pouring manure on to Mr Obama’s head
Advertisement
“US special services let their president down conducting the silliest operation to capture sham Russian spies,” declared the paper, which has close links with Russia’s secret services.
Komsomolskaya Pravda was equally scornful, picking up details of evidence against the spy ring for its sarcastic headline “Americans suss out ‘Russian agents’ by morse code, invisible ink and orange suitcases.”
Kommersant was also unimpressed, declaring: “The highest-profile Russia spy scandal in the United States looks like the most unconvincing and most unnecessary.”
It quoted an unnamed high-ranking source, however, as saying that Russia’s “eloquent speakers” had been told not to comment on the issue to avoid inflaming relations further.
Moskovsky Komsomolets, a newspaper known for its close ties to the Kremlin, called the scandal “more politics than intelligence”, adding: “It would be more logical to assume that the main target in this story is Obama who has a lot of ill-wishers in his own country.”
Advertisement
Nezavisimaya Gazeta focused on the same theme with a report headlined: “FBI interfered in the Reset.”
Vladimir Putin, the Prime Minister and former KGB agent, avoided aggressive criticism and sought to play down the affair when he met Bill Clinton, the former US President, at his Moscow residence on Tuesday.
“I understand that back home police are putting people in prison,” Mr Putin said, drawing a laugh from Mr Clinton. “That’s their job. I’m counting on the fact that the positive trend seen in the relationship will not be harmed by these events.”