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The Russian military intelligence services are known by the Russian acronym GRU, which means in Russian the Main Directorate of Intelligence. His name was officially changed in 2010 to become the main direction (or just GU) of the General Staff, but his former acronym – GRU – is even more widely used.
Its published objectives are the provision of military intelligence to the Russian President and Government. The additional objectives include the guarantee of the military, economic and technological security of Russia.
The GRU reports directly to Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu who would have access to the Russian nuclear briefcase.
The other two main intelligence and security services of Russia were created from the KGB of the Soviet era: the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) and the Federal Security Service (FSB).
The building of the main management of the staff of the Russian Armed Forces, in Moscow. Credit:AP
What are the capabilities of the GRU?
According to a Western assessment of the GRU seen by Reuters, the GRU has a long-standing program to operate "illegal" spies – those who work without diplomatic cover and who live under an assumed identity for years until Moscow gives them order.
"There is a longstanding" illegal "program reserved for the most delicate or most negative tasks on the entire spectrum of GRU operations, the evaluation said.
The GRU is considered a big Russian cyber player.
"It plays an increasingly important role in the development by Russia of the information war [both defensive and offensive], "according to Western evaluation.
"It's an aggressive and well-funded organization that has the direct support of – and access to – [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, allowing freedom in his activities and clemency in matters of diplomatic and legislative control ", according to the evaluation.
The GRU also has a considerable impact special forces unit. They are the elite of the Russian army.
"I do not like the rankings, but the GRU is at the highest level in this sector," said Onno Eichelsheim, director of the Dutch intelligence and security service. "They pose a very real threat."
Four Russian officers are escorted to their flight after being deported from the Netherlands on April 13, 2018 for allegedly attempting to hack into the OPCW's chemical monitoring network. Credit:AP
What are the Western claims about GRU?
– The United States has sanctioned GRU officers, including its leader, Igor Korobov, for their attempts to interfere in the interference in the 2016 presidential election. to ingest in elections.
– Britain said that two GRU officers had attempted to murder Skripal, a former double agent of the GRU, in Novichok. Russia has denied any involvement.
Ruslan Boshirov, on the left, and Alexander Petrov, probably not their real name, appear on the Kremlin-supported TV channel RT.Credit:RT channel
– Britain said that GRU was behind the BadRabbit attack in 2017, the hacking of the Democratic National Committee in 2016 and attacks on the computer systems of the Foreign Office and the United States. Defense Science and Technology Laboratory in 2018. Russia stated that the charges were factual.
– The Netherlands claimed to have caught four cyber spies from the GRU who were trying to hack the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. The same group, known as the 26165 unit, had targeted the investigation into the destruction of Malaysia Airlines flight MH-17.
– The United States has indicted seven GRU officers for plotting to hack the World Anti-Doping Agency, which had exposed a Russian doping program.
– The GRU played an important role in the annexation of Crimea in 2014, the conflict in Ukraine and the 2008 conflict with Georgia.
Note: The GRU does not have a public website and does not publicly comment on its actions. Its structure, staffing and funding are state secrets.
What is the history of GRU?
Russian spies trace their history since at least the reign of Ivan the Terrible in the sixteenth century, which establishes a feared espionage service.
The GRU was created as the Registrar's Directorate in 1918 after the Bolshevik Revolution. The founder of the Soviet state, Vladimir Lenin, insisted on securing his independence from the other secret services, who considered him a rival.
While the mighty KGB was dismantled during the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the GRU remained intact.
The GRU officers played an important role in some of the key stages of the Cold War and post-Soviet history – from the Cuban missile crisis to the war in Afghanistan and the annexation of Crimea .
The public had the rare opportunity to see parts of the GRU headquarters in Moscow when Putin visited in 2006. He was shown to participate in shooting practice.
Reuters
