Reports by correspondents, statements by political leaders, civilian testimonies, and expert analysis are just the tip of the iceberg war in Ukraine.
Deeper below, immersed in a sea of uncertainty, we find the dark labors of intelligence. The invisible hand of secret services – Russians, Ukrainians and Westerners – has shaped the conflict from the first lines to the present day between miscalculations and strokes of genius for better or for worse. So we discover that the victories and defeats told by the media around the world have unnamed authors. Not so much Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskyy or a decorated general, but, to use a very general but effective term, the so-called “spies”.
The latest book by Aldo Giannuli, Spies in Ukraine (publisher Ponte alle Grazie), touches on this very interesting topic. And it does so by perfectly reconstructing the Ukraine affair and giving the reader all the cognitive tools they need to extricate themselves from the complex ongoing dispute.
The origins of the war in Ukraine
Giannuli’s book gives an overview of all the dynamics and background of the war in Ukraine. We start with an excellent reconstruction of the factors underlying the so-called “military special operation” that Putin wants. At the beginning of his presidency, the head of the Kremlin said clearly: “Either Russia will be a great power or it won’t be one at all.” Western analysts, however, labeled this phrase a mere propaganda stunt and underestimated its actual programmatic importance.
But without knowing the history, culture and the Russian peculiarities, reviewed with rare depth by Giannuli, it is impossible to understand the current political system under Putin’s leadership. At the same time, without knowing the historical and cultural background of Kiev, it is utopian to hope to understand how Ukraine was not overwhelmed by the shock wave from Moscow.
Cooperation between the Ukrainian and Western services
In the next passage, the volume puts the spotlight on the long arm of the secret services in Ukraine, or rather the nucleus of the entire text. First if Kyiv managed to hold his own against the Russian Bear, who is equipped with considerable resources and weapons, mainly thanks to the bond consisting between Ukrainians and western services, mainly the United States.
A first indication of this cooperation would have been the murder of about fifteen generals Russians, located thanks to phone traffic. On May 2, it was the New York Times that broke the news about the US services’ role in the affair, irritating the Biden administration.
Another case in which there was talk of cooperation between the various task forces against the Russians was the failed landing of Kremlin troops hostelas well as failed assassination by Zelensky. Not to mention the Ukrainian attack on Popasna on August 12, which resulted in the destruction of Wagner’s command.
The Role of the Spies
The secret services have been involved in the Ukrainian blast furnace at different times. First, underlines Giannuli, i Russian services They surveyed the terrain and began penetrating operations. Almost at the same time, the Americans observed the accumulation of Russian troops on the Ukrainian border and predicted the invasion, and it can be assumed that the Chinese also became active during this phase.
THE Ukrainian services instead, they seemed incredulous, unprepared for the imminent danger, though many doubt it. Only later, probably, did the i British services, Poles and Balts, followed by Romanians, Slovaks and Bohemians. Instead, the rest of the Europeans came last: the French, Italians, and Germans.
Giannuli therefore lists hypotheses, reviews more or less obvious evidence and invites the reader to reflect on what happened. In order to understand the role and decisions of the services and the real meaning of the ongoing war, it is necessary to put the current facts into context, deep Russia and Russia’s long history as “military empire“. And therefore Spies in Ukraine is a candidate to become a fundamental book for the interpretation of the Ukrainian mosaic.