Russian intelligence recruited an Irish lawmaker to act as an agent of influence and emissary, Politico reports . Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris commented that this fact does not surprise him, quoted by BTA.
The news was first reported by John Mooney, the Sunday Times' Dublin correspondent, and confirmed to Politico by two senior Irish government and judiciary officials.
According to officials, the MP was not arrested or charged because he had not committed a crime, although he had been building links with Kremlin agents operating out of the Russian embassy in Dublin. Due to Ireland's strict libel laws, his identity cannot be publicly disclosed.
When reporters asked Harris if there was a Russian spy operating in Parliament, the prime minister said he could not confirm the information, but added: “It shouldn't come as a surprise to any of us.“ He noted that Russian intelligence activity in Ireland, as in other countries, has increased since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
In 2022, Ireland expelled four Russian diplomats accused of recruiting agents among Irish political and business circles. Moscow responded with restrictive measures against dozens of Irish politicians, which was met with derision in Dublin. “Russia seeks to distort public opinion and is actively working in this direction around the world. Ireland is not immune to this,” said Harris.
Officials told Politico that the lawmaker was recruited in 2019 as Russia sought to escalate tensions between Ireland and the United Kingdom over Brexit, particularly over Northern Ireland.
Sergei Prokopiev, the Russian spy who allegedly recruited the MP, was among four Russian embassy officials expelled in March 2022. All of them were identified as associates of the Russian military intelligence (GRU). After his expulsion, Prokopiev continued to coordinate activities with the Irish MP through a Russian agent who was periodically sent to Dublin to establish a romantic relationship with a politician in an attempt to compromise him through a “honey trap”.