US intelligence agency publishes video asking Russians to share information that could be ‘more valuable than you think’.
The CIA’s short video in Russian was accompanied by a text saying the agency wanted to hear from military officers, intelligence specialists, diplomats, scientists and people with information about Russia’s economy and its leadership.
“Contact us. Perhaps the people around you don’t want to hear the truth. We want to,” the text said.
Published nearly 15 months into Moscow’s war with Ukraine, the video invites Russians to take a colossal risk.
President Vladimir Putin has warned his compatriots to be on their guard against traitors, and parliament last month voted to increase the penalty for state treason from 20 years to life in prison.
In the video – published on the CIA’s official YouTube channel and the Telegram messaging app, popular in Russia – a male voice reflects on the meaning of heroism and endurance as lone individuals are seen weighing their decisions: a man trudging through snow, a woman staring through a window.
“We are easily swayed by lies. But we do know what our reality is. The reality we live in. And the reality we talk about in whispers,” the voice says.