The Most Unprecedented Espionage Story of the Third Millennium in Estonia
One of the most astonishing espionage stories of recent decades has unfolded in Eastern Europe. The story of a Russian spy who has now sought asylum in Estonia is so strange that perhaps the Russians themselves won’t immediately feel the impact of the blow dealt to them due to the bizarre twists and turns of this tale.
Artem Zinchenko is a Russian spy who had been working for the GRU, the security and intelligence structure of the Russian military, for a long time. Five years ago, he was the first Russian spy that the Estonian government managed to capture. This was a significant achievement, and Estonia had finally succeeded in identifying and arresting a Russian agent before he could flee to Russia.
Zinchenko was later exchanged with an Estonian prisoner held in Moscow, and he has now sought asylum in Estonia for some time. Eventually, after Zinchenko’s defection from Russia and his cooperation with Estonia, the news of this event has been released. Zinchenko is now effectively a collaborator with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.