A new book by Drew Hinshaw and Joe Parkinson of the “Wall Street Journal” sheds light on the intricate details of the 2024 spy exchange between the United States and Russia. “Swap: A Secret History of the New Cold War” details the complexities and surprising elements of this high-stakes operation.

The exchange,which took place on August 1,2024,at an airport in Ankara,involved multiple countries,including the US,Russia,Turkey,Belarus,Germany,poland,Norway,and Slovenia. Russia released 16 individuals, including journalist Evan Gershkovich and eight Russian journalists and opposition figures. In return, the West released individuals like Wadim Krasików and a Russian spy couple who had been posing as Argentinians in Slovenia.

The Curious Case of Pablo Gonzalez

Among those who returned to Russia was Pablo Gonzalez, a Spanish journalist identified as an agent of russia’s military intelligence agency, GRU. Hinshaw and Parkinson’s book provides further details about Gonzalez’s story, which gained media attention following his detention in February 2022.

“However, the united States Ambassador explained that this woudl cause additional complications that could threaten the entire agreement.”

According to the authors, the Polish government initially sought the release of Andrzej Poczobut, a correspondent for “Gazeta Wyborcza” in Minsk, as part of the exchange. However, the book states, “However, the United states Ambassador explained that this would cause additional complications that could threaten the entire agreement.” The book further reveals that “Before [Roger] Carstens reached Warsaw, Polish officials only needed a small encouragement to approve his proposal to include Gonzalez in the transaction developed in Washington.” The nature of this “encouragement” remains undisclosed.

Spanish Counterintelligence Knew of Gonzalez’s Activities

The book also reveals that spanish counterintelligence was aware of Gonzalez’s ties to the GRU as early as 2014, despite public support for him from journalists and politicians in Spain after his arrest in Poland.

The authors write that the “Spanish National Intelligence Centre followed him in 2014 and watched him help in the settlement of Gru officers arriving to support the separatists in the north-eastern part of Catalonia.” The CIA also became involved, gathering information on Gonzalez’s contacts, allies, and bank accounts. Analysts were reportedly surprised by gonzalez’s habit of storing documents on the cloud, describing him as “a gift of heaven, whose natural talents were associated with regular stumbles in spy craft.” The book notes that Gonzalez took a selfie with Russian opposition leader alexej Navalny at a Barcelona clinic and then boarded a plane to St.Petersburg with Sergei Turbin, an official in the GRU directorate for foreign agents, with both tickets purchased using the same credit card.

Hinshaw and Parkinson claim that Polish services were aware of Gonzalez’s activities in Poland well before his arrest in Przemyśl in February 2022. However, it was British intelligence agency Mi6 that alerted polish authorities to the increasing danger posed by Gonzalez’s actions, leading to his detention by the Internal Security Agency.

the authors also explain Gonzalez’s choice of attire upon arriving in Moscow on August 1, 2024: a “Star Wars” T-shirt.According to the book, the Russian spy is a “Star Wars” enthusiast who identifies with the Empire and even has a Darth Vader tattoo.