DEFENESTRATION STATION: There was a time when the most dangerous place on earth was the area between TV cameras and certain politicians. But that has been eclipsed by the very risky area near any window of a Russian-controlled building. The latest evidence is a report from the German news magazine Der Spiegel which reports that a Russian “diplomat” was found dead last month after apparently “falling” from some high perch at the Russian embassy in Berlin. Der Spiegel said sources told them the man was an undercover FSB officer who was related to a high-ranking FSB general. Bellingcat added detail saying the victim was the son of Gen. Alexey Zhalo, head of the FSB’s Directorate for Protection of Constitutional Order. Zhalo’s directorate reportedly was the unit that tailed Alexei Navalny prior to his 2020 poisoning. The 35-year-old fall guy’s body was quickly repatriated to the Motherland and no autopsy was performed in Germany. The Russian embassy confirmed to the Interfax news agency that a Russian diplomat had died but said it was "not commenting on this tragic event for ethical reasons." It is unclear why an organization so adept at the use of poisons and nerve agents would need to fall back on old school methods of getting rid of people – perhaps it has something to do with the supply chain.
MISSION TO MOSCOW: As November dawned, President Biden dispatched CIA Director Bill Burns to Moscow where (according to media reports) Burns was sent to warn the Russian government to think twice before doing anything foolish with all those troops they seem to be building up along the border with Ukraine. Burns seems to draw the short straw on a number of difficult missions and some folks wondered why Secretary of State Antony Blinken wasn’t given the nod instead. Perhaps it was because SECSTATE cannot travel around without a media entourage in his wake. The U.S. attempted to conduct the mission in a low-key manner – low key until the Russians released a photo of Burns meeting with Nikolai Patrushev, head of Russia’s national security council. Subsequent reporting indicated that while in Moscow, Burns also had a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin. It is unclear whether Putin and the Russians took aboard Burns’ message – but the trip was a success in at least one aspect – he seems to have avoided standing too close to any open windows.
SHOT IN THE DARK: The Associated Press reported late last week that, according to Rep. Chris Stewart, (R-UT) a member of the House intelligence committee, “thousands of intelligence officers could soon face dismissal for failing to comply with the U.S. government’s vaccine mandate.” No doubt the Congressman has access to a lot better info than we do – but color us skeptical. To start with, 97% of the CIA workforce is reportedly fully vaccinated – and much of the rest of the Intelligence Community is made up of military members with each of the services reporting compliance rates in the 90’s as well. So, who are these thousands of intelligence officers? You’ve got us.
THERE IS PROBABLY AN EXPLANATION FOR THIS: ABC-TV is developing a CIA drama called “Candygram.” The title alone is going to need some ‘splaining. But the part that really has us scratching our heads is that the concept calls for the Agency to hire a “street-smart local” to set up shot in her hometown of Las Vegas where she butts heads with her by-the-book Station Chief. Well, maybe budgets are tight, and ABC doesn’t want to do filming at overseas locations so they figure just set all the action on the strip. Why traipse around the world to collect intelligence? Just invite all the foreigners to come to Caesars Palace and steal their secrets there. Note – this show is just “in development” – meaning it is a long way from reaching air. We’re betting what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.
FOGGYBOTTOMS UP: We’ve told you before about the State Department Inspector General’s search for foreign gifts stored in a special vault at Foggy Bottom that went missing at the end of the last administration. Perhaps not the most valuable of those gifts – but the most intriguing - was a bottle of whiskey from the government of Japan valued at $5800 that went on a walk-about. Well, the IG has finished their work and has come up empty. There certainly was no shortage of suspects – since the IG found that between August 2020 and January 2021, 77 individuals entered the vault more than 3,000 times. Sounds like instead of a cipher lock – the vault has a revolving door.
THAT DIDN’T TAKE LONG: Last week’s Dead Drop had an item about a forthcoming book about special operations veterans who struggled to help Afghan allies try to escape Afghanistan amid the Kabul collapse in August. This week, we hear that Hollywood isn’t waiting for the printed word and Universal Pictures is working on a “fact-based drama” about the Afghanistan evacuation. Channing Tatum and Tom Hardy are signed up to star in the yet-to-be named flick which is being written by George Nolfi (who wrote The Bourne Ultimatum among other action flicks.)
POCKET LITTER: Dead Droplets and bits and pieces of interesting /weird stuff we discovered:
SCI-FI OH MY: Netflix has a series called “Stranger Things” – about some teenagers who witness supernatural forces and secret government operations. The tabloid The Sun (which is definitely into both of those things) says that series is inspired by real-life government experiments that were carried out at Camp Hero and the Montauk Air Force Station in Long Island between 1971 and 1983. The alleged (emphasizing the word “alleged” here) events supposedly involved teen boys who were abducted and later drugged to erase their memories…and this ‘allegedly’ included the use of electromagnetic chairs used to amplify psychic powers. It is all supposedly connected somehow to the “Philadelphia Experiment” in which the Navy allegedly figured out how to make a ship invisible and teleported from Philadelphia to Norfolk during World War II. It all makes our hair hurt – although that may be the result of having sat in electromagnetic chairs for too long.
YOU TANKED MY BATTLESHIP! Unlike the baseball, football and rock and roll halls of fame, the public can vote on who (or more precisely, what) gets into the Toy Hall of Fame. This year’s inductees at the National Museum of Play (which is an actual place in Rochester, NY) were just announced. Some folks are unhappy, however, that the game “Battleship” failed to receive enough votes to get in. “American Girl Dolls” and the strategy board game “Risk” made it this year – but Battleship came up just short. To add insult to injury, another 2021 selectee was “sand,” You read that right. Sand is being inducted in the Toy Hall of Fame. If “sand” can make it…why not “air” or “water”? Naval toy gazers were especially annoyed because previous year’s entries have honored the Army at least twice: “G.I. Joe” made it in in 2004 and “Little Green Army Men” were inducted in 2014. While the Marine Corps might claim this year’s winner, sand – they also have dibs on Crayola Crayons which were scribbled into the HOF record books back in 1998. The Air Force and Space Force, like the Navy, appear to be under-represented. You can do something about that though, by casting your votes early for next year.
QUIT TOYING AROUND: You know there are some news tips you have been dying to share with The Dead Drop. Break out your crayons and send us a note at TheDeadDrop@theCipherBrief.com.
Read more expert-driven (and slightly more serious) national security insights, perspective and analysis in The Cipher Brief
