Armenia: “Azerbaijani intelligence uses social media to recruit Armenian soldiers”

| News, Armenia, Azerbaijan

The Armenian National Security Service (NSS) declared that a spy network operating in the nation has been uncovered and eliminated. Hundreds of Armenian military are said to have been engaged. 19 individuals have already been arrested, with some of them confessing.

The network, according to the NSS, was developed by foreign intelligence services. One of the policemen stressed in his statement, which was published by the department's press staff, that he met "with employees of the special services of Azerbaijan" on Facebook.

The spies pretended to be Armenian women on social media and recruited their targets by convincing them that their online friends would engage in "intimate interactions."

Over 20 military officers of various grades were targeted by foreign intelligence services. The Armenian military personnel were allegedly promised money in return for secret information on the deployment sites of different military bases, units, command staff, defensive lines, engineering buildings, and equipment during their encounters. The spy services' targets all had the necessary security clearance to get the material.

The creation of the espionage network is described in the SNB report. Fake profiles of supposedly Armenian women with intimate images were formed on social media to limit the danger of exposure, according to reports. The Armenian officers would then be introduced to the women.

Because all foreign intelligence agency workers spoke Armenian fluently, these "network acquaintances" became "close connections." The personnel were then given a monetary compensation in exchange for information concerning Armenia's military forces.

They were specifically questioned on troop locations, the amount and types of militaries and engineering equipment, military unit members and leadership staff, and the deployment of defensive structures.

According to a statement released by Armenia's National Security Service, all evidence of cooperation with foreign intelligence services "in exchange for paying for a network of agents whose hostile activities were directed against Armenia's sovereignty, territorial integrity, and external security" exists. Checks indicating the receipt of a fee in foreign currency were also discovered.

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