A bald, bearded man carrying two backpacks walked down the steps of a aircraft earlier than he prolonged his proper hand in a greeting.
His black T-shirt had a picture of a stormtrooper, a soldier from George Lucas’s Star Wars motion pictures. Under the character, there have been 4 phrases: “Your empire wants you.”
The 42-year-old Pablo Gonzalez Yague, also called Pavel Rubtsov, a Spanish-Russian journalist – and obvious Star Wars fan – was a part of the largest prisoner swap between Russia and the West because the Chilly Struggle.
Awaiting his arrival and likewise extending his hand at Moscow’s Vnukovo Worldwide Airport was Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Twenty-six folks have been a part of the August 2 trade, together with Vadim Krasikov, an alleged hitman for Russia’s Federal Safety Service (FSB), Wall Avenue Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, and Russian opposition politicians Vladimir Kara-Murza and Ilya Yashin.
The final two are mentioned to be targets of Rubtsov’s studies to his Moscow handlers.
Rubtsov, whom the Polish safety providers have accused of working for Russia’s navy intelligence, has by no means admitted to being a Russian spy.
He was arrested on February 27, 2022, within the Polish metropolis of Przemysl whereas reporting on the influx of Ukrainian refugees after Russia’s invasion.
Days earlier, he had reported from jap Ukraine however was requested by the Ukrainian safety providers to go away the nation.
Born in 1982 in Moscow, Rubtsov acquired a double id at delivery. His Spanish aspect is from his mom whereas his father is Russian.
On the age of 9, after his mother and father divorced, he moved along with his mom to Spain. He settled within the Basque nation after which, Catalonia. After getting Spanish citizenship, he additionally bought a brand new identify: Pablo Gonzalez Yague. However he by no means gave up his Russian passport.
In Spain, he studied Slavic and safety research; married a Basque girl, Oihana Goiriena, with whom he had three youngsters; and commenced his profession as a journalist.
Goiriena has not been Rubtsov’s associate since a minimum of 2016.
He labored for a number of Spanish media retailers, corresponding to as La Sexta and Publico, and specialised in conflicts within the former Soviet Union. He lined the annexation of Crimea, the Nagorno-Karabakh battle between Azerbaijan and Armenia, and different separatist republics within the area.
“He recognized as a Basque, a Spaniard, a Catalan and a Russian. He discovered house inside himself for all these identities,” a buddy of Rubtsov’s who requested anonymity advised Al Jazeera.
“He was clever, shiny and had a fantastic sense of humour. It was a pleasure to spend time with him whether or not you wished to observe soccer, a political debate or dance. Folks flocked to him.”
After his arrest, rights teams, together with Reporters with out Borders and Amnesty Worldwide, criticised Poland for holding him in jail with out trial. In Spain, his launch was met with enthusiasm.
“His arrest, though no proof was supplied, was justified on the idea of suspicions of espionage in favour of Russia, which couldn’t be confirmed,” the Federation of Journalists Associations of Spain, the biggest Spanish journalistic organisation, wrote.
The environment in Poland, the place Rubtsov had lived since 2019, and among the many Russian opposition circles he moved in has been much less festive.
Individuals who knew him really feel indignant, betrayed and are searching for explanations, which he has thus far failed to supply, three of his pals advised Al Jazeera on situation of anonymity.
‘Folks with a number of identities are helpful for safety providers’
An investigation by the impartial Russian media outlet Agentstvo from Might 2023 discovered that Rubtsov supplied detailed studies to the GRU, Russia’s navy intelligence company, on the actions of the Russian opposition and specifically Zhanna Nemtsova, whom he befriended in 2016. Nemtsova is the daughter of opposition chief Boris Nemtsov, who was fatally shot simply exterior the Kremlin in 2015.
He reportedly downloaded paperwork from her laptop, knowledgeable his handlers about actions of Russian opposition figures he met at occasions of the Boris Nemtsov Basis and mentioned monetary remuneration for his work. Based on the investigation, this info supplied the idea for his imprisonment in Poland.
Agentstvo additionally reported that in 2017, Rubtsov travelled on the identical aircraft as GRU agent Sergey Turbin. It mentioned their tickets have been bought on the identical time, utilizing the identical checking account.
“He was a really good particular person and a really gifted journalist. I instantly recognised him as somebody who lined conflicts. We understood one another,” Irina Borogan, a Russian investigative journalist and professional in Russian safety providers who met Rubtsov by Nemtsova’s basis, advised Al Jazeera.
“It then turned out that his father has labored for the Russian intelligence beneath the guise of a journalist too. Folks with a number of identities are helpful for the safety providers. Working for the Russian intelligence is commonly a household endeavour.”
Borogan has little doubt that Rubtsov was an necessary asset for the Kremlin.
“Putin stood up for him. In spite of everything, there are a lot of extra folks with Russian passports imprisoned for hacking or gathering info within the West. The truth that he made it to the swap listing signifies that he was useful,” she mentioned.
Wlodzimierz Sokolowski, aka Vincent V Seversky, a Polish creator of spy novels and a former intelligence officer, agreed with Borogan’s evaluation however added that journalists seldom make good spies.
“Journalists are individuals who wish to shine and have a tendency to distort the details. It’s usually dangerous to work with them as a result of it takes plenty of time and trial,” he mentioned.
“On the identical time, nevertheless, journalism is a wonderful cowl for intelligence officers as a result of journalists have good causes to fulfill folks, politicians and entry delicate info. I do know a number of intelligence officers who’ve posed as journalists all their lives.”