Russia’s foreign intelligence service, the SVR, carries forward a Soviet-era playbook, using its ties with the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), or Moscow Patriarchate, for strategic influence. Once aligned with the KGB, today the ROC remains both a spiritual institution and a tool of foreign policy amidst the Russo-Ukrainian war.
The following gallery investigates the complex relationship between spies and clergy, explores methods employed by Russian intelligence, and considers the impact on the Church’s credibility as a faith-based organization entwined with statecraft. Click on for more details.