Putin arrives at the Kremlin amid heavy security to meet members of the Russian Security Council. Among those in attendance at the February 27th meeting were Russia’s top spy master Mikhail Fradkov, Director of the SVR – there to present the latest intelligence information on the situation in Ukraine.
On February 27th 2015 President Vladimir Putin held a briefing session with permanent members of the Russian Security Council. Among those in attendance were the Director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Mikhail Fradkov (see profile below).
Unlike the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), the SVR is responsible for intelligence and espionage activities outside the Russian Federation. It works in cooperation with the Russian Glavnoye Razvedyvatel’noye Upravleniye (GRU, Main Intelligence Directorate), which reportedly deployed six times as many spies in foreign countries as the SVR in 1997.
The SVR is also authorized to negotiate anti-terrorist cooperation and intelligence-sharing arrangements with foreign intelligence agencies, and provides analysis and dissemination of intelligence directly to the Russian president…
The meeting participants discussed in detail the situation with respect to the implementation of the Minsk agreements regarding the withdrawal by parties to the conflict of heavy arms from the demarcation lines.
A number of current socioeconomic issues were also discussed.
Outside of the meeting’s agenda, the President informed the Security Council members of a decision to cut the salaries of Presidential Executive Office staff by 10 percent.
Taking part in the meeting were Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev
Prime Minister of the Russian Federation
“>, Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko
Matviyenko, Valentina
Chairwoman of the Council of Federation
“>, Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office Sergei Ivanov
Ivanov, Sergei
Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office
“>, Secretary of the Security Council Nikolai Patrushev
Patrushev, Nikolai
Secretary of the Russian Federation Security Council
“>, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
Lavrov, Sergei
Foreign Minister of Russia
“>, Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev
Kolokoltsev, Vladimir
Interior Minister
“>, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu
Shoigu, Sergei
Defence Minister
“>, Director of the Federal Security Service Alexander Bortnikov
Bortnikov, Alexander
Director of the Federal Security Service
“>, Deputy Secretary of the Security Council Rashid Nurgaliyev
Nurgaliyev, Rashid
Deputy Secretary of the Security Council
“>, Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service Mikhail Fradkov
Fradkov, Mikhail
Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service
“>, and permanent member of the Security Council Boris Gryzlov
Gryzlov, Boris
permanent member of the Security Council
“>.
See video: Russia: Putin convenes Security Council meeting to discuss Ukraine ceasefire deal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ag86TEANuSg
With drawl of forces and heavy weapons
See video: E.Ukraine rebels withdraw tanks, GRADs, howitzers from front line https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCfzJQakdYU
See video: Ukraine withdraws heavy weaponry from Donbas front line https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wuFPrv8zX8
See video: Ukraine begins artillery withdrawal from front-lines https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0prwk0SHmmA