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A Kremlin ruling last week demanded all Russian scientists ask permission to meet foreign colleagues and report on their exchanges, invoking fears that both sides could be using Cold War-era espionage tactics once again. It is no secret that Putin, a former KGB agent, is always keen to get one over his varying counterparts in Washington using a number of methods. However, Washington’s spying problem may still be present to this very day, according to a high ranking intelligence chief.

In 2019 book ‘To Catch a Spy’, James Olson details Putin’s ambition to recreate the paranoia that encompassed US society during the Cold War. Citizens were frequently reminded – via American propaganda – to watch out for Soviet spies. Espionage during the Cold War was rife on both sides – there was even a report of a US soldier defecting to the enemy. With the dissolution of the Soviet Union and subsequent rise of Russia’s global role, Mr Olson claims that Putin’s decision to send spies to the US is politically useful to him.

Putin has spies all over

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He added: “My personal view is that Putin was so obsessed with America and loved the spy game so much that he simply liked the idea of having illegals planted on US soil. “He did not really care that they were doing nothing of real value. “He was just satisfied to know that he was beating US counter-intelligence and had spies in place for the long haul who might one day do something worthwhile.” Mr Olson was also frustrated at US intelligence for not dealing with the issue in a forceful enough manner. READ MORE: Vladimir Putin's secret motive behind meeting with Macron revealed

Soviet spies were common

Citing 10 Russian spies who were arrested in 2010, the former CIA chief lamented a prisoner trade that Washington carried out. The US received just four Russian agents in return – leading Mr Olson to label his own country as the “aggrieved party”. The lack of response could, in future, encourage Putin to keep testing his luck. Combined with American passivity, he claims that the Russian leader is sure to go further in his espionage efforts. DON'T MISS

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He added: “His grudge is personal and he has unleashed his very capable intelligence services against us. “I am certain he takes great pleasure in showing his disdain for America by sheltering the contemptible US turncoat Edward Snowden. “Russia will remain a major counterintelligence concern for the United States for the foreseeable future. “We would be naive in the extreme to believe that we could ever expect good faith from Vladimir Putin.” Mr Snowden, who is currently in an undisclosed location in Moscow, leaked the existence of a mass domestic US spying programme in 2013.

Russia is helping to isolate the US

Mr Olson’s words have led to fears of a return to Cold War-era diplomacy between Moscow and Washington. Charles Bremner, who worked as a reporter in the Soviet Union, wrote in The Times today: “The lid came off quickly with the Gorbachev spring that opened in 1985. “Soon foreigners could live where they wanted and consort with anyone, though the 'organs' never really went away. “Thirty years on, their successor, the FSB, seems to be back on the job.”

Putin - a strategic operator

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