Latvian security service outs Russian and Belarusian spies

Latvia's Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIDD) has published the names of six officers from the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces (GRU) and one from the Belarusian GRU, who it says spied on Latvia, as part of its annual activity report for 2025.

"Russia's campaign of sabotage operations continues in Europe and Latvia, aimed at intimidating the public and political decision-making regarding support for Ukraine. Saboteurs, as well as intelligence collectors, are increasingly being recruited by Russian intelligence and security services on online communication platforms," warned the MIDD.

According to the MIDD, intelligence centres located in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kaliningrad, and Smolensk are responsible for building regional spy networks at the operational-tactical level.

The intelligence centres are particularly active in recruiting Latvian nationals who regularly travel to Russia and Belarus, it said.

MIDD has identified several Russian GRU officers and one Belarusian GRU officer who spied on Latvia, and has now made the names of these officers public.

Major Alexey Pizhikov, Captain 2nd Rank Alexey Lesnikov, Captain 2nd Rank Nikolay Chetverikov, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Yushin, Colonel Alexander Gladkov, and Grigory Ivanov, whose rank is not specified, have been identified from the Russian special services.

Meanwhile, Sergei Baranov has been identified from the Belarusian GRU.

Pictures of some of the suspected spies have also been published.

MIDD particularly highlighted the activities of Russian GRU officer Ivanov, born in 1989, who has been active against Latvia since 2017.

Ivanov is believed to have organized the acquisition of intelligence information on private infrastructure used for aviation, such as the Spilve airfield, the presence of NATO allied forces in the country, and various current events in the Latvian defence sector.

By asking for support from a distant relative in Latvia, Ivanov obtained information about the mood of Latvian society, the assistance provided to Ukraine, and critical infrastructure facilities in the country's territory.

Ivanov also received practical information from the his contact, for example, about the conditions for purchasing prepaid mobile cards in Latvia – though this is not exactly classified information.

The MIDD pointed out that Belarus also conducts intelligence gathering in the interests of Russia, and its military intelligence can be considered a "branch" of the Russian GRU.

The Latvian special services have also noted that until February 2022, Russian GRU officers served at the Russian Embassy in Latvia, using the cover of defense or military attaché officers,

Shortly after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, all GRU officers who were identified at the Russian embassy at the time were expelled from Latvia.

Interestingly, the MIDD has not previously named persons it has identified as Russian or Belarusian spies. Its equivalent report covering 2024 offered tips on how to spot potential spies but named no names and was noticeably shorter than the 2025 edition.

The MIDD is one of the three Latvian security and intelligence services alongside the Constitution Protection Bureau (SAB) and State Security Service (VDD).

The full MIDD annual review can be read here.