appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Agence France-Presse

A Moscow court on Tuesday convicted a retired Norwegian border guard who was charged with spying on Russian nuclear submarines and sentenced him to 14 years in prison.
Frode Berg, 63, was detained in Moscow in 2017 following a sting operation by Russia’s FSB security service.
A former Russian police officer was accused of handing Berg files on the Russian navy and given a 13-year prison term in December.
Berg has admitted to acting several times as a courier for the Norwegian intelligence services but said he thought he was only carrying money.

The verdict was read out in front of journalists in the Moscow court room on Tuesday, the only time the case was open to the media.
Berg’s lawyer Ilya Novikov said after the sentencing that his client was not planning to appeal.
“Berg has no illusions, he accepted (the verdict) calmly. He expects his government to undertake diplomatic efforts,” Novikov said. “We see no practical use in appealing.”
He said before the verdict that an effort had probably been made to gather intelligence but that Berg was unaware of it.
“He’s been used without his knowledge,” Novikov said. “We cannot talk about gathering any secret information.”
‘Dirt and filth’: Russians attack ‘unpatriotic’ film about Red Army withdrawal from Afghanistan
He warned that Berg might not survive a lengthy prison sentence in Russia.
“He’s 63 and in the conditions of Russian prisons that’s basically a life sentence.”
Novikov said he hoped diplomatic efforts could persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to sign a presidential pardon so Berg could be released and go home.

The case was raised during a meeting between Putin and Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg in Saint Petersburg last week.
Asked about the possibility of Berg being pardoned, Putin said: “A person can only be pardoned if he has been convicted. He has not been convicted yet.”
Novikov said that the fact that Putin spoke publicly about the case with the Norwegian prime minister was “probably a good sign” for his client.
Foreigners convicted of espionage have “a chance for their case to be resolved on some political level”, the lawyer said, though he added: “We know nothing of what is going on behind the scenes.”
Nato member Norway normally enjoys good relations with neighbouring Russia, with which it shares a short land border.
But relations have grown more tense since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea and a pro-Russian insurgency erupted in eastern Ukraine.

In recent years Russia has broadened its definition of treason and espionage, alarming rights groups. Espionage is punishable in Russia by up to 20 years in prison.
In another high-profile case, former US Marine Paul Whelan was detained in late December and charged with espionage.
His lawyer said Whelan was handed a USB drive containing state secrets but he had thought it was information about Russian culture.


Trump ‘personally called for China’s help’ to end Ukraine war in summit with Xi

How ‘strategic ambiguity’ made Turkey a winner in the Iran war

How China’s home-grown WS-10 engine helped make the country a modern air power

US quietly plays the long game on energy dominance against China

Russia

Russia sentences Norwegian citizen Frode Berg  to 14 years in prison for spying on country’s nuclear submarines

Norwegian citizen Frode Berg (R), accused of spying on Russia, is seen in a defendants cage prior to a verdict announcement at the Moscow City Court. Photo: EPA-EFE

A general view of the Moscow City Court building in Moscow on April 15, 2019, a day before the court is due to deliver verdict against 63-year-old Norwegian Frode Berg on spy charges. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP)

A Russian flag is seen at the top of the Moscow City Court building in Moscow on April 15, 2019, a day before the court is due to deliver verdict against 63-year-old Norwegian Frode Berg on spy charges. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP)

epa07509640 Norwegian citizen Frode Berg, who is accused of spying on Russia, is seen in a defendants cage prior to a verdict announcement at the Moscow City Court in Moscow, Russia, 16 April 2019. The court sentenced Frode Berg to 14 years in a high-security penitentiary. Frode Berg was detained in Moscow during an FSB (Federal Security Service) operation in 2017 on espionage charges. EPA-EFE/MAXIM SHIPENKOV

Russian court refuses house arrest request, extends detention of alleged US spy Paul Whelan

Paul Whelan, a former US Marine, who was arrested in Moscow at the end of last year, attends a hearing in a court in Moscow. Photo: AP Photo

Former U.S. marine Paul Whelan who is being held on suspicion of spying, is escorted out of a courtroom after a ruling regarding extension of his detention, in Moscow, Russia, February 22, 2019. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov

Former U.S. marine Paul Whelan who is being held on suspicion of spying, stands in the courtroom cage after a ruling regarding extension of his detention, in Moscow, Russia, February 22, 2019. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

News

World

Russia & Central Asia

Berg has admitted to acting several times as a courier for the Norwegian intelligence services but said he thought he was only carrying money


Berg has admitted to acting several times as a courier for the Norwegian intelligence services but said he thought he was only carrying money.


Russia sentences Norwegian citizen Frode Berg to 14 years in prison for spying on country’s nuclear submarines

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}Berg has admitted to acting several times as a courier for the Norwegian intelligence services but said he thought he was only carrying money

Berg has admitted to acting several times as a courier for the Norwegian intelligence services but said he thought he was only carrying money