Russian Special Services Spy on Moldovan Authorities from the Roof of the Embassy
Dozens of antennas and satellite dishes have been installed on the roof of the Russian embassy in Moldova, which are used by Russian special services for surveillance.
This is stated in an investigation by Jurnal TV.
According to the investigators, the number of dishes and transmitting devices on the roof of the Russian Embassy in Chisinau is growing every year. Also, mysterious people can be spotted periodically on the roof of the diplomatic mission and on neighbouring buildings.
According to journalists, these people are classified liaison officers from the Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) and the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), closely connected to hacker groups that hacked the mail of European leaders Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron, as well as former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Russian intelligence officers climbed to the roof of the embassy before the parliamentary and presidential elections, before the European Political Community summit held near Chisinau, and on 14 May, the day of the election of the bashkan (head) of Gagauzia, an autonomous region of Moldova.
Pavel Yakunin, a military attaché officer at the Russian Embassy in Moldova, who is also responsible for secret channels of communication with the GRU headquarters in Moscow and the space intelligence reception centre in Vatutinki near Moscow, was seen on the roof.
Currently, the liaison officers and "listeners" in Chisinau are commanded by Alexandr Vasinovich. He often appears on the roof of the embassy and gives instructions to his subordinates.
In total, journalists counted 28 antennas and dishes on the embassy's roof. Some of them allow to establish satellite communications, microwave relay lines or amplify the signal of a wireless Internet router, to determine the location of ships, aircraft and guided missiles.
They intercept satellite telephony signals. This makes it possible to listen to telephone conversations and intercept conversations on the radio of the local police.
In addition, the wives of scouts are used as couriers to transport files that are too "heavy". Sources in the border police say that the wives often fly to Moscow and back, and their bags are always full of flash drives and hard drives. Since the wives have diplomatic immunity, they cannot be searched.
In April, journalists from several European publications published an investigation stating that Russian special services had installed a surveillance system in European countries using antennas at embassies that served Russian diplomats expelled from these countries.
In February of this year, Moldovan President Maia Sandu revealed details of an alleged Russian military coup plan, which she said included attacks on government institutions and hostage-taking.
As reported by The Gaze, Moldovan Parliament Speaker Igor Grosu said that persons with diplomatic status from Russia who are in breakaway Transnistria are engaged in activities that go beyond diplomacy.