Iran threatens to retaliate against Greece if US uses military bases to launch attack
January 17, 2020 1 Comment
Iran has issued a warning against Greece, saying that it will retaliate if the United States attacks the Islamic Republic using its military bases on Greek soil. It is the first time that Iran has threatened to launch attacks against a member of the European Union in connection with the recent rise in tensions between Tehran and Washington.
Iranian officials issued the warning against Greece in response to comments made by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during his recent visit to the White House, which coincided with the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani by the US. Speaking about Soleimani’s killing, Mitsotakis said that “we [Greeks] are allies with the US, so we stand by our allies through difficult times”. And he continued: “I understand this particular decision was taken by taking into consideration what is the US national interest, and we stand by that decision”.
Iran’s response to the Greek prime minister’s comments came in a letter that was sent by the Iranian embassy in Athens to one of Greece’s leading broadsheets, Kathimerini. The letter pointed out that Greece and Iran enjoyed “friendly, traditional and historical relations”. Given “the absence of any differences or tension between [the two countries] in recent centuries”, said the letter, “we believe that [Mr. Mitsotakis’] statement cannot be the official position of the Greek government”. It went on to warn that “The Islamic Republic of Iran has made it very clear that in the event of a US-led war against the country, the concession of [military] bases by any country to the American invader will be considered a hostile act and Iran reserves the right to respond in a clear and decisive manner”.
Last weekend, Greece’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Nikos Dendias, revealed that the Iranian government had delivered a statement to his office, protesting Mitsotakis’ comments. But he added that he had not had a chance to read it. He also said that his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, had asked to speak with him about Greece’s stance in the US-Iran dispute.
► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 17 January 2020 | Permalink
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By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS| intelNews.org |
intelNews.org 
Greek authorities uncover identity of Russian spy who posed as Greek citizen
March 20, 2023 by Joseph Fitsanakis 1 Comment
In an article published on Friday, the Greek daily Kathimerini, identified the woman as “Irena A.S.”. It said she had arrived in Greece from an unspecified Latin American country in 2018. Soon afterwards, she assumed a new cover identity, using the birth certificate of a Greek child named Maria Tsalla. The child is believed to have died in the northeastern Athens suburb of Marousi in December 1991, a few days after being born. According to the report, NIS/EYP officers discovered that the dead child’s archived death certificate in the Marousi town hall had been removed by persons unknown, giving officials the impression that Maria Tsalla was still alive.
Soon after assuming her cover identity, Irena A.S. registered herself as a resident of Aliveri, a largely rural municipality in the central Greek island of Euboea. Less than a year later, using the name Maria Tsalla, she opened a knitwear store in the central Athens neighborhood of Pagrati, where she also rented an apartment. It is believed that she had hired an employee and had a Greek boyfriend, none of whom were aware that she was not Greek. According to the article in Kathimerini, the NIS/EYP has yet to uncover evidence that Irena A.S. was in contact with officials at the Russian embassy in Athens (pictured).
For reasons that remain unclear, Irena A.S. left Greece in a hurry in January of this year, leaving behind most of her personal belongings. She eventually contacted her store and apartment landlords, informing them that she would not be returning to Greece due to some health issues. In the weeks that followed, she ensured that all of her financial obligations toward her landlords and employee were met. It is believed that Irena A.S.’s husband, also a Russian national, who lived in Brazil using forged cover credentials, and going by the cover name “Daniel Campos”, also disappeared in January of this year. It is highly likely that they have both returned to Russia, possibly under fear of their cover being blown.
► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 20 March 2023 | Permalink
Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Brazil, espionage, EYP (Greece), Greece, Irena A.S., Irena Shmyrev, News, non-official-cover, Russia