Summary

Dr. Dennis Walters (LinkedIn; Website) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss the Irregular Warfare Center and its ties to intelligence. Dennis is the current Acting Director of the IWC. 

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• The need for an Irregular Warfare Center
• The Irregular Warfare Center’s mission 
• What role intelligence plays in irregular war
• Creating unique solutions for unique situations 
• How do intelligence and Special Operations blend together? 

Reflections

• Education as a strategic tool
• Creative problem solving

And much, much more …

Episode Notes

This week on SpyCast, the IWC’s Acting Director Dr. Dennis Walters joins Andrew in a conversation about all thing's irregular warfare. What is irregular warfare, and how does it differ from conventional warfare? What is the mission of the IW Center, and what tools and tactics do they employ to accomplish this? Tune in to find out. 

And… 

Want to keep your enemies at bay, try an irregular approach – throw a “Scorpion Bomb” at them: yes, it is literally a glass jar filled with scorpions. The tactic was resurrected by ISIS. 

Guest Bio 

Dr. Dennis Walters is the acting Director of the Irregular Warfare Center. He served in the United States Army for 26 years, with time spent in the Army Intelligence Corps and in command of a Special Forces Operations Detachment in the Balkans. Upon his retirement from the Army, Dennis worked to build a network of irregular warfare experts that would culminate in the Department of Defense Regional Defense Fellowship Program. He has also instructed college courses on irregular warfare at the National Defense University and Regent University. He speaks fluent Russian.

Quotes of the Week

"It varies based on region, based on country, based on culture. And that's the part that we have not done well on the U.S. side, really factoring in all of those social implications of how you structure programs to make a country more stable, more resilient, more leaning towards the ideals that support a global community. That's the part that I think that we were missing in some cases." – Dr. Dennis Walters.

Resources 

SURFACE SKIM

*SpyCasts*

• Ukraine & Intelligence: One Year On with Shane Harris (2023)
• “The Third Option” – US Covert Action with Loch Johnson, Part 1 (2022)
• “The Third Option” – US Covert Action with Loch Johnson, Part 2 (2022)
• Al Qaeda, DOD & the 9/11 Commission with Bonnie Jenkins and Alexis Albion (2022)
• Afghanistan, the Mujahedeen, Al Qaeda – My Time at CIA and State with Diana Bolsinger (2021)

*Beginner Resources*

• Lessons from the Ukraine Conflict on Conventional War, ABC News (2022) [4:24 video]
• What is Hybrid Warfare? GeoVane (2019) [3:57 video]
• Maximizing the Potential of American Irregular War, C. Cleveland et al.,The Hill (2023) [op-ed]
• safire-t.html">Irregular Warfare, D.Safire, New York Times (2008)

Summary

This week’s episode is the result of a collaboration with The Sound, a recent limited series podcast exploring the so-called Havana Syndrome. The guests are host and investigative journalist Nicky Woolf (Twitter), former senior CIA operations officer and sufferer Marc Polymeropoulos (Twitter), and attorney and advocate Mark Zaid (Twitter).

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• What Havana Syndrome is
• Who it is affecting
• Theories to explain it
• The role of intelligence organizations

Reflections

• The unending search for truth 
• Humanity in the intelligence field 

Quotes of the Week

"There’s a betrayal I felt when the CIA didn't give me the medical attention that I needed. You know, if you're not feeling well and an employee comes to you, send 'em to the doctor. And they weren't able to do that. And to me, that's just a leadership fail for the ages." – Marc Polymeropoulos.

Resources 

*SpyCasts*

• The Past 75 Years: A History of the CIA with Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones (2022)
• Dealing with Russia with Jim Olson (2022)
• One of the CIA’s Most Decorated Field Officers with Marc Polymeropoulos (2021)
• NatSec and the Law with Mark Zaid (2018)

*Beginner Resources*

• Havana Syndrome: What We Know, B. Tau and W. P. Strobel, The Wall Street Journal (2023) [Short article]
• What is the “Havana Syndrome?”, Brut America, YouTube (2022) [3 min. video]
• medical.net/health/What-is-Havana-Syndrome.aspx">What is Havana Syndrome?, B. Cuffari, News Medical (2022) 

Video

• Who or What is Behind Havana Syndrome?, Al Jazeera, YouTube (2022)
• Early Victims of ‘Havana Syndrome’ Speak Out About Ongoing Health Struggles, NBC News, YouTube (2021)

Primary Sources 

• Updated Assessment of Anomalous Health Incidents, National Intelligence Council (2023)
• Anomalous health Incidents: Analysis of Potential Causal Mechanisms, IC Experts Panel (2022)
• Senate Hearing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978, U.S. Senate (1978)
• Kissinger Telephone Conversation with Ambassador Dobrynin, National Security Archive (1975)
• Samuel Koslov Memorandum to the State Department, “Biomedical Phenomena,” National Security Archive (1965)

*Wildcard Resource*

• Havana Syndrome is an example of a toponymic term in the medical field – A name that comes from a geographic place. For more on medical etymology, check out this article that shares the backstory of the name of 7 well-known conditions. 

Summary

Sameer Patil (Twitter; Website) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss intelligence and cybersecurity in the world’s most populous nation. He formerly worked in the NSC Secretariat in the Prime Minister’s Office in New Delhi. 

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• Cybersecurity in the world’s largest democracy
• The breakdown of India’s intelligence agencies
• Cybersecurity among the world’s second largest internet user base
• India’s relationships with China and Pakistan

Reflections

• Imperial legacies
• Borders of the mind

Guest Bio

Sameer Patil is a senior fellow at the Observer Research Foundation, where he is an expert on the intersection between cybersecurity, counterterrorism, and national security. Previously, he served as the Assistant Director of the National Security Council Secretariat at the Prime Minister’s Office in New Delhi. He has a PhD in International Relations from Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, and is the author of the 2022 book Securing India in the Cyber Era.

Quote of the Week

"So, it's a very unique relationship because if you see both the countries, uh, in a sense emerged as modern nation states at around the same time. India attended independence in 1947 the Chinese Communist party emerged victory years from a protracted civil war. In 1949 and. Initial periods of both the countries, as modern nation states were very cordial relationship, very friendly relationship in fact, we had a very populous slogan at that time, which is known as “Hindi Chini Bhai Bhai,” which means India, China, Brothers - Indians and Chinese are brothers together. But by the late 1950s, many of the issues started to unravel." – Sameer Patil.

Resources 

SURFACE SKIM

*SpyCasts*

• “Intelligence & the World’s Largest Democracy” - Indian Spy Chief Vikram Sood (2021)
• “Afghanistan, the Mujahedeen, Al Qaeda” – My Time at CIA & State with Diana Bolsinger (2021)

Beginner Resources

• Cyber War: How Prepared is India? WION (2022) [Video]
• India’s Rise in Cybersecurity Incidents, The Print (2022) [Video]
• The Entire History of India in Under 10 Minutes, Made in History (2022) [Video]
• Cybersecurity in 7 Minutes, Simplilearn (2021) [Video] 
• India Profile: Timeline, BBC (2019) [Article]
• The Indus Valley Civilization, J. Green, PBS (n.d.) [Video]

DEEPER DIVE

*Featured Resource*

• Securing India in the Cyber Era, S. Patil (Routledge, 2022)

*Wildcard Resource(s)*

• “ajit-doval-turns-77-today-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-james-bond-of-india-10303881.html">The James Bond of India”
• Real-life spy Ajit Doval who spent years undercover in Pakistan
• He is currently the National Security Advisor of India! 

Summary

Dr. Alexis Albion (LinkedIn, Twitter) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss amazing artifacts with amazing stories from SPY’s newest pop-up exhibit: “Secrets Revealed: Highlights from the Grant Verstandig Collection.”

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• Casablanca’s spy connection
• Lasting effects of the Rosenberg trial
• Women in Intelligence
• WWII covert operations

Reflections

• What makes a story timeless?
• The human dimension of history

And much, much more …

Quote of the Week

“To us, that might be the Rosenbergs – These sort of incredible historic figures from the Cold War Intelligence. But to Mike Meeropol, it's his mom and dad. So, I think it's a really human story as well. This letter makes recommendations about their sentencing, about life and death, and again, for me it evokes that really human dimension about whether or not this mother might have lived.” – Dr. Alexis Albion.

Resources 

*SpyCasts*

• Hitler’s Trojan Horse – Nazi Intelligence with Nigel West (2023)
• Honey Trapped: Sex, Betrayal & Love – with Henry Schlesinger (2022)
• Amazon to Darien, Atlantic to Pacific – Intelligence in Colombia with former Head of its Navy Admiral Hernando Wills (2022)
• My Life Looking at Spies &the Media with Paul Lashmar (2021)

*Beginner Resources*

• Soviet Spy Scandal: Who Were the Rosenbergs?, L. Davidson, HistoryHit (2022) [Article]
• Casablanca in 2 Minutes, YouTube (2019) [Video]
• Who was the real Mata Hari?, N. Barber, BBC Culture (2017) [Article]
• How D-Day Was Fought From The Sea, Imperial War Museum (n.d.) [Article]

*Artifacts Discussed*

• Mata Hari Pencil Sketch (ca. 1905)
• German Bombing Map, WWII (1941)
• Victor Lazlos Prop Passport (ca. 1942)
• The Neptune Monograph (ca. 1944)
• J. Edgar Hoover Letter, FBI (1951)

*Primary Resources*

• Letter from Sophie Rosenberg to Mamie Eisenhower, Eisenhower Presidential Library (1953)
• Letter from Clyde Miller to Dwight Eisenhower Urging Clemency for the Rosenbergs, Eisenhower Presidential Library (1953)
• Response from Dwight Eisenhower to Clyde Miller, Eisenhower Presidential Library (1953)
• The Clydebank Blitz, National Records of Scotland (1941)

*Wildcard Resource(s)*

• The classic quote from Casablanca, “Here’s looking at you, kid” is ranked #4 on the American Film Institute’s Top 100 Movie Quotes. In fact, four quotes from the movie made it onto the list – Can you guess what the others are?

Summary

Yossi Kuperwasser (Twitter; Website) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss the Israeli intelligence community. Yossi is the former head of the Research Division of IDF Military Intelligence.

*FULL SHOWNOTES & FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE*

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• The layout of Israeli intelligence
• The First and Second Intifadas
• Israel’s complicated position in the Middle East
• Relationship between Israeli and American ICs

Reflections

• Intelligence as a learning process
• The importance and difficulty of trust 

And much, much more …

*FULL SHOWNOTES & FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE*

Quote of the Week

“That's the problem of intelligence - It's an ongoing learning process. And if you don't learn all the time to enable you to adjust to the developing situation, you are going to fail.” – Yossi Kuperwasser.

Resources 

*SpyCasts*

• The Counterterrorism and Counter WMD Strategist with Dexter Ingram (2022)
• Son of Hamas, Spy for Israel with Mosab Hassan Yousef and Gonen Ben Yitzhak (2010)
• Israeli Intelligence and the Jonathan Pollard Spy Case with Ron Olive (2007)

*Beginner Resources*

• History of Israel, Encyclopedia Britannica [encyclopedia entry]
• What you need to know about the 1987 Intifada, PBS (2019) [article]
• The Oslo Accords, 25 Years Later, Washington Post (2018) [video]
• 1967 War: Six Days that Changed the Middle East, J. Bowen, BBC (2017) [article]
• The Israel-Palestine Conflict: Brief, Simple History, Vox (2016) [video]

*Wildcard Resource(s)*

• The Little Drummer Girl – A fictional novel about a double agent working for the Israelis, written by famed spy author John le Carré in 1983. 

*FULL SHOWNOTES & FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE*

Summary

Nigel West (Wikipedia) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss Germany’s military intelligence service during WWII, the Abwehr. Nigel is known as the expert’s expert on spy history.

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• The rise and fall of the Abwehr 
• The 20th of July plot to kill Hitler & Operation Valkyrie 
• How effective German intelligence was during WWII 
• How “Nazi” the Abwehr was

Reflections

• The search for truth across generations
• The power of historical documents

EXTENDED SHOW NOTES HERE!

Quote of the Week

“The Germans were ruthless. They had really good intelligence on all the bridges. They knew exactly what had to be captured in advance. The bridges would then be held, so as to allow the tanks over, and the tanks wouldn't wait to attack strong points. They would just go directly ahead in order to achieve their objectives.” – Nigel West.

Glossary

• Abwehr: Germany’s military intelligence service from 1920-1945, serving both the Riechswehr and Wehrmacht. Translates to “defense.”
• Reichswehr: The name for German armed forces from 1919-1935, under the Weimar Republic and first two years of the Third Reich. Per the Treaty of Versailles, the Reichswehr was very limited in arms and personnel. Translates to “Reich Defence.” 
• Wehrmacht: The name for German Armed Forces from 1935-1945 under Nazi Germany. The heavily militarized and manned Wehrmacht illustrated Hitler’s intentions to expand Germany. Translates to “Defense Force.” 
• Sicherheitsdienst: The intelligence agency of the Schutzstaffel, or SS. Translates to “Security Service.”
• Gestapo: Nazi Germany’s political police force. Notorious for their brutality and representation of Nazi authoritarianism. Full name Geheime Staatspolizei, translating to “Secret State Police.”

EXTENDED SHOW NOTES HERE!

Resources 

SURFACE SKIM

Featured Resource(s)

• Hitler’s Nest of Vipers: The Rise of the Abwehr, N. West (Frontline, 2022)
• Hitler's Trojan Horse: The Fall of the Abwehr, N. West (Frontline, 2023)

*SpyCasts*

• Nazis on the Potomac – with former National Park Service Chief Historian Bob Sutton (2022)
• A Jewish Spy in Nazi Germany – 101-Year-Old Marthe Cohn’s Incredible True Story (2021)

*Beginner Resources*

• July Plot, Britannica (2023) [encyclopedia entry)
• From War to War in Europe: 1919-1939, National WW11 Museum (2018) [Background on Interwar Period]
• The Treaty of Versailles, What Did the Big Three Want?, YouTube (2016) [3 min. video]
• German Chief Spy Admiral Canaris, P. Kross, Warfare History Network (2014)
• Abwehr, A. Lerner, Encyclopedia.com (n.d.)

EXTENDED SHOW NOTES HERE!

Summary

Cathy Hackl (Twitter, LinkedIn) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss the potential implications of the metaverse on intelligence. Cathy has been called the “Godmother of the Metaverse.”

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• What the metaverse is
• Security and counterintelligence in a virtual world
• Futurism within intelligence agencies 
• Potential risks and consequences of the metaverse

Reflections

• How virtual spaces can affect our physical world
• The necessity to evolve alongside technology

And much, much more …

Episode Notes

The web will continue to evolve and change with time, but what’s coming next? And how will this evolution affect the ways that intelligence organizations around the world conduct their operations?

This week on SpyCast, Cathy Hackl joins Andrew to explain what the metaverse is, what we can expect from living in this new virtual world, and how intelligence agencies can begin planning for the Web 3 future. Cathy Hackl has been dubbed the “Godmother of the Metaverse” 

Resources

Featured Resource

• Into the Metaverse: The Essential Guide to the Business Opportunities of the Web3 Era, Cathy Hackl (Bloomsbury, 2023) 
• Metaverse Marketing [Cathy’s podcast]

*Beginner Resources*

• What Is the Metaverse, Exactly?, Wired (2022) [Article]
• Web 3.0 Explained In 5 Minutes, YouTube (2022) [5 min. Video]
• 12 new tech terms you need to understand the future, R. Gray, BBC (2018)

*SpyCasts*

• How Artificial Intelligence is Changing the Spy Game – with Mike Susong (2022)
• Trafficking Data: The Digital Struggle with China -- with Aynne Kokas (2022)
• The FBI & Cyber – with Cyber Division Chief Bryan Vorndran (Part 1 of 2)
• The FBI & Cyber – with Cyber Division Chief Bryan Vorndran (Part 2 of 2) 

*Wildcard Resource*

• Watch the world’s first metaverse music video, Snoop Dogg’s “House I Built,” here!

Summary

Shane Harris (Twitter, LinkedIn) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss the role of intelligence in the Ukraine conflict one year after it began. Shane reports on intelligence for the Washington Post and is the author of two books.

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence 

• Where we are with the war in Ukraine
• The role intelligence agencies are playing in the conflict
• The leadership of Zelensky and Putin
• What it’s like to report on spies
• Dealing with sources inside the intelligence agencies

Reflections

• The tenacity of the Ukrainian people and army
• History as both repetitive and unpredictable 

Episode Notes

This week on SpyCast, Shane Harris of The Washington Post joins Andrew to reflect on the previous year and discuss the role of intelligence within the war in Ukraine. He has been writing about these issues for more than two decades, including a period with the Wall Street Journal. He is the author of two books, The Watchers, on the rise of surveillance in the US, and @War, on the rise of the military-internet complex. He was part of a team that won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service in 2021.

Quote of the Week

“At the outset, [I] believed that what we were looking at was probably a pretty swift Russian victory … They would come in, they would decapitate the central government in Kiev in the first 72 hours, and it would be bloody, and it would be violent, but that Russia would prevail because they were deemed to have the superior military in terms of technology experience numbers. Turns out, all those things were spectacularly wrong.” – Shane Harris.

Resources 

*SpyCasts*

• How Artificial Intelligence is Changing the Spy Game with Mike Susong (2023)
• Dealing with Russia A Conversation with Counterintelligence Legend Jim Olson (2022)
• Becoming a Russian Intelligence Officer with Janosh Neumann (2022)
• The Information Battlespace: Foreign Denial and Deception with Bill Parquette (2022)

*Beginner Resources*

• Has Putin's war failed and what does Russia want?, P. Kirby, BBC (2023)
• A Brief History of Modern Ukraine, BBC (2022) [YouTube video]
• Russia-Ukraine Relations in 60 Seconds, CBC News (2022)

Summary

Aliza Bran (LinkedIn, Twitter) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss her role as Media Relations Manager at the International Spy Museum. Aliza is a D.C. native and graduate of Washington University in St. Louis. 

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• The media and intelligence
• International Spy Museum Artifacts
• Espionage fact vs. fiction
• The history of The International Spy Museum

Reflections

• Creativity & Ingenuity 
• Growing up in the DMV 

And much, much more …

Episode Notes

Aliza Bran’s passion and excitement for the world of SPY is contagious. Around the office of the International Spy Museum, Aliza is known for her cheerful demeanor, quick wit, and intensely creative mind. She’s been working at SPY for six years now, four of those years as our Media Relations Manager. 

How does Aliza navigate the ever-changing media landscape and represent the International Spy Museum on this worldwide stage? What are Aliza’s favorite memories, artifacts, and exhibits from SPY? What makes her love this work so much, and what skills do you need to build a career in media relations? Tune in to find out. 

And… 

Aliza has been particularly busy these past few weeks covering the news surrounding the Chinese Spy Balloon. For a taste of Aliza’s work, find articles and video on the subject that she orchestrated here, here, here, and here. 

Quote of the Week

“Part of it for me is knowing that we live in a very polarized world right now and I want to have a sense of our full audience, which is everyone. So I'm going to look at stories, places that aren't natural fits for where I tend to go. Because if people go there to read the news, I want to know what they're reading, I want to know what interests them. I want to know what people are excited about, worried about, looking at.” – Aliza Bran.

Resources 

*SpyCasts*

• My Life Looking at Spies & the Media with Paul Lashmar (2021)

*Beginner Resources*

• What is Media Relations?, Nancy Shenker, ClearVoice (2021) [Blog Post]
• Paid vs. Owned vs. Earned Media: What's the Difference?, Indeed (2021) [Article]

Books

• The Good Assassin, S. Talty (Mariner, 2020)
• The Alice Network, K. Quinn (William Morrow, 2017)

Articles

• Deadly Women, Dirty Laundry, and a Shootout With The IRA, Reaper Feed (2020)

Video

• Former CIA Operative Explains How Spies Use Disguises, WIRED (2019)
• Meet a Former CIA Chief of Disguise, Atlas Obscura (2020)
• Alias, ABC (2001-2006)

Artifacts from SPY’s Collection 

• Scrotum Concealment
• Aston Martin DB5
• Iron Concealment Device

*Wildcard Resource*

• Check out the Refinery29 article that features Aliza’s SPY expertise applied to the collection and analysis of Taylor Swift-related intelligence. 

Summary

Alan Kohler joins Andrew to discuss the FBI’s counterintelligence division. He is a recipient of the FBI Director’s Award for Outstanding Counterintelligence Investigation. 

***FULL SHOWNOTES AVAILABLE HERE***

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• Counterintelligence vs. Counterespionage
• How the FBI recruit’s foreign agents 
• Ideological motivations behind spying
• Effect of technology on counterintelligence

Reflections

• Staying grounded under pressure 
• The value of creativity

Notes

Alan Kohler (LinkedIn, Website) has been the FBI Assistant Director for Counterintelligence since 2020. Alan and Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) talk all things counterintelligence.

***FULL RESOURCES AVAILABLE HERE***

*SpyCasts*

• The FBI & Cyber with Cyber Division Chief Bryan Vorndran, Part 1 (2022)
• The FBI & Cyber with Cyber Division Chief Bryan Vorndran, Part 2 (2022)
• My Global Career as a Female FBI Agent with Kathy Stearman (2021)
• The FBI Way with Counterintelligence Spy Chief Frank Figliuzzi (2021)

***FULL RESOURCES AVAILABLE HERE***

*Beginner Resources*

• What We Investigate, FBI (n.d.) [webpage]
• FAQ’S, FBI (n.d.) [webpage]
• US Opens Counterintelligence Investigation into China Every 12 Hours (Dir. Wray), MSNBC (2022) [video]
• What We Know About China’s Spy Agency, Bloomberg Originals (2019) [video]
• Hollow Nickel/Rudolf Abel, FBI (n.d.) [Article]
• NCSC Mission, Vision, and Goals, ODNI (n.d.) [Website]

Glossary: 

• Counterintelligence: Information gathered, and activities conducted to identify, deceive, exploit, disrupt, or protect against espionage or other intelligence activities
• FBI Attaché: a special agent assigned to a U.S. embassy or consulate overseas to liaise with local law enforcement and intelligence agencies. They pursue terrorist, intelligence, and criminal threats with international dimensions. 
• Occam’s Razor: a rule of thumb theory that states when you are faced with competing explanations for the same phenomenon, the simplest one is probably the correct one. Attributed to William of Ockham, a 14th century English theologian. 

***FULL RESOURCES AVAILABLE HERE***