FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE

Russia Accuses Top Space Agency Official of Feeding State Secrets to Unnamed NATO Country

The FSB said the ex-journalist has been handing over classified military secrets.

An ex-journalist who now works as senior official at Russia’s space agency has been accused of handing top secret military information to an unspecified NATO country, according to Reuters. Ivan Safronov works as an aide to the head of Russia’s space agency, Roscosmos. He joined the agency as a media adviser in May but, two months on, finds himself accused of state treason—a charge that could see him jailed for as much as 20 years if he’s found guilty. However, Roscosmos said his detention is not linked to his work with them. The FSB security service is reported to have said Safronov worked for the foreign intelligence service of an unnamed NATO country and had been passing over classified military secrets. He’s expected to appear in court later Tuesday. Reuters reports that Safronov was previously a well-known journalist at Russian daily newspapers.