Kyiv quietly fuming over Russian memorial to Soviet-era secret agent in Crimea

Fresh debate over remains of former Soviet spy reignites Kuril Islands dispute 

The shadow of the unresolved conflict between Tokyo and Moscow over four islands in the Pacific has become a recurring theme in Russian-Japanese relations. This has led to a series of extremely high-profile public relations exercises by Moscow, which Washington is gradually becoming embroiled in.

• RUSSIA - SVR awards artists' prize.

• FRANCE - Tracfin places focus on transparency

• US - Washington provides close cyber support to Romania

• FRANCE - Prison intelligence struggling
  

NIIRK spymasters scrutinise Baltic and Central Asian countries via state media 

NIIRK, the small scientific research centre made up of ex-KGB agents is making assessment of "communication flows" a central priority. It is examining these in the three Baltic countries and five Central Asian states where Moscow is trying to push its narratives using soft power tools, such as the Rossotrudnichestvo and state media outlets.

Next generation of Russian siloviki blocked by old guard 

The Kremlin allowed its most powerful generals to stay on an extra 5 years beyond retirement age and is now looking to extend their careers even further on an ad hoc basis, dashing the prospects of younger officers.

Putin reaffirms trust in Alexander Linerts by keeping him on as head of GUSP 

The man at the helm of Vladimir Putin's special programmes service, the GUSP, which handles any sensitive files not taken care of by the other services often with a focus on crisis management, has proven his worth to the Russian president.

SVR chief's parallel network 

Sergei Naryshkin, President Vladimir Putin's long-standing ally and former chief of staff, has another less publicized role in addition to [...]