Spy head gives bleak outlook

In his annual press conference in Bern, the head of the Swiss Intelligence Service has painted a bleak picture of the current situation.

Christian Dussey warned journalists at the start of his conference by saying that he wished he could be presenting a more optimistic look of the future. 

He says he doesn’t believe the Russian state is about to collapse and the Ukraine war will continue for the rest of this year at least and he expects a massive re-armament in Europe.

He points out that Switzerland is an espionage hotspot. The agency says it suspects a third of Russia’s 220 diplomats are spies. The Chinese send spies outside the diplomatic ranks, preferring to use journalists and scientists. 

Cyber-attacks are on the rise. The country has recently been a target by Russians ahead of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s video address to parliament. Ransomware infections are also climbing.

He also says while there have been no attacks by Islamic State in Europe since the end of 2020 – there remains a risk of a so called ‘lone-wolf’ action. 

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