London: Russian activity in Ireland should come as no surprise to anyone, the Irish leader has said, amid reports the Kremlin used a “honeytrap” to recruit an Irish politician.
Simon Harris, the taoiseach or prime minister, was commenting after it was reported that a member of the Irish parliament had been enlisted by Russian intelligence as an agent during the Brexit talks.
Simon Harris, Prime Minister of Ireland in Switzerland in June.Credit: AP
A Russian spy, operating in Ireland under diplomatic cover, reportedly cultivated the parliamentarian to undermine relations between London, Dublin and the EU.
Ireland’s intelligence services were reportedly monitoring the politician when he met a high-ranking Russian military intelligence officer at a location outside Dublin, according to The Sunday Times.
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Security officials told the newspaper the unnamed politician pledged to do everything he could to assist the spy.
The MP is reported to have offered to establish relations between Moscow and paramilitaries in Northern Ireland at a delicate point during the Brexit talks, despite having no obvious connection to such groups.
The Russians had allegedly used an attractive female agent as a “honeytrap” to ensnare the politician in a compromising romantic situation to gain leverage over him.
The paper also reported the potential agent, code-named Cobalt, remains in parliament despite being identified by the Irish military and security services.