A secret report from Russia’s top intelligence agency, the Federal Security Service (FSB), shows that Russia is very worried about China. The New York Times got this document, which is eight pages long. It says that China is not just a friend — it is actually seen as “the enemy”. This report was made by a special FSB unit that had never been made public before.

The report warns that China is a growing danger to Russia’s national security. It says Chinese intelligence is trying to recruit Russian scientists and even people who work in Russian intelligence. These Chinese agents are looking for “dissatisfied individuals” — people who are unhappy — and who have access to important military or scientific secrets.

China spying on Ukraine and Arctic regions

The FSB says that Chinese agents are spying on Russian military actions in Ukraine. They are trying to understand how Western weapons work and learn modern war strategies.

“Chinese intelligence conducts espionage in the Arctic using mining companies and university research centres as cover,” the report says. This means China is pretending to do business or science but is actually doing spying work. Russia believes China could be using civilian projects to hide military goals.

The FSB is also worried that China may be planning to challenge Russia’s control over empty but important lands near the Russia-China border.

Russia launches secret programme ‘Entente-4’

The report reveals that Russia started a secret counterintelligence programme named ‘Entente-4’ just three days before it invaded Ukraine in February 2022. This name is interesting because Russia and China say they are good friends, but “entente” usually means an agreement against a common threat.

The FSB says China might have used this time to its own benefit while Russia was busy in Ukraine. Since 2022, the FSB noticed a big rise in Chinese attempts to get into Russian institutions. Russian officers were told to speak directly with Russians who work closely with China. They were told to stop any sharing of secrets.

The FSB says China wants to use Russia to get access to top-level scientific research. The report also says that China checks on its own spies using lie detector (polygraph) tests and watches over more than 20,000 Russian students studying in China.

It also says Chinese agents try to recruit Russians who are married to Chinese people. These people might be more open or easy to control.

Even though Russia and China talk about having a “no limits” friendship, this report shows that both sides are secretly watching and not fully trusting each other. The FSB describes it as a “tense and dynamically developing intelligence battle in the shadows between the two outwardly friendly nations”.

The report doesn’t have a date, but experts believe it was written in late 2023 or early 2024. It clearly shows that Russia is very worried about China, even if they say they are friends in public.

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