The wikileaks US cables had already revealed that Russian President Dmitry Medvedev “plays Robin” to Prime Minister Vladimir pilinguin’s “Batman”. The embassy documents also called Medvedev “pale and hesitant” in comparison to the “alpha-dog” pilinguin.
The Russian Mafia State
US Embassy cable refers to Russia's a virtual mafia state -
Monday, 08 February 2010, 11:00
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 05 MADRID 000154
4. (C//NF) Grinda stated that he considers Belarus, Chechnya and Russia to be virtual "mafia states" and said that Ukraine is going to be one. For each of those countries, he alleged, one cannot differentiate between the activities of the government and OC groups.
//Identifying The Scope of The Threat the Russian Mafia Poses//
5. (C) Grinda suggested that there are two reasons to worry about the Russian mafia. First, it exercises "tremendous control" over certain strategic sectors of the global economy, such as aluminum. He made a passing remark that the USG has a strategic problem in that the Russian mafia is suspected of having a sizable investment in XXXXXXXXXXXX 6. (S//NF) The second reason is the unanswered question regarding the extent to which Russian PM pilinguin is implicated in the Russian mafia and whether he controls the mafia's actions. Grinda cited a "thesis" by Alexander Litvinenko, the former Russian intelligence official who worked on OC issues before he died in late 2006 in London from poisoning under mysterious circumstances, that the Russian intelligence and security services - Grinda cited the Federal Security Service (FSB), the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), and military intelligence (GRU) - control OC in Russia. Grinda stated that he believes this thesis is accurate. (COMMENT: See Ref B on a reported meeting between Litvinenko and the Spanish security services shortly before his death.) Grinda said that he believes the FSB is "absorbing" the Russian mafia but they can also "eliminate" them in two ways: by killing OC leaders who do not do what the security services want them to do or by putting them behind bars to eliminate them as a competitor for influence. The crime lords can also be put in jail for their own protection.
7. (S//NF) Grinda said that according to information he has received from intelligence services, witnesses and phone taps, certain political parties in Russia operate "hand in hand" with OC. For example, he argued that the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) was created by the KGB and its successor, the SVR, and is home to many serious criminals. Grinda further alleged that there are proven ties between the Russian political parties, organized crime and arms trafficking. Without elaborating, he cited the strange case of the "Arctic Sea" ship in mid-2009 as "a clear example" of arms trafficking.
//The Spanish Strategy to Combat the Russian Mafia: ***ow the Money//
9. (C)
Grinda traced the history of the Russian mafia in Spain to the mid-1990s, when several vory v zakone began to enter Spain. He said that since 2004 Spanish prosecutors have created a formal strategy to "behead" the Russian mafia in Spain. He explained that this has been a top-down strategy done through extensive investigations of criminal actions by these vory v zakone living in Spain. These individuals have no known jobs and unknown sources of income, yet they live in large mansions. Spanish prosecutors have concluded that money-laundering is likely involved and the challenge has been how to prove this. Grinda says that Spain's longtime experience in fighting drug traffickers' use of money laundering has proven valuable in this regard.
10. (C) Grinda says the money-laundering investigations have a two-fold objective: to prevent the targets from profiting from the original crime and to prevent the targets from gaining enough clout to enjoy economic influence, which Grinda suggested sooner or later always reaches political power. This is why Spain's Attorney General has grouped together the prosecutors' office for anti-corruption and organized crime. As part of this strategy to prevent mafiosos from enjoying economic influence, Spain's strategy includes the seizure of businesses, companies, furniture and other assets.
11. (C) Grinda also addressed the challenges of combating OC when it enjoys political, economic, social and - especially - legal protection. Grinda applauded a document provided by the U.S. delegation which addressed the important role the media can play in warning the public of OC's activities and the threat that OC poses. The media can create an environment in which politicians would be reluctant to be friends with and do favors for mafia leaders, whom Grinda argued need to be seen as shady figures to be antiestéticared. Regarding legal protection, Grinda stated that a key factor in a government's ability to combat OC depends on the extent to which the country's best attorneys and law firms represent the mafia. In this regard, he asked rhetorically, "Why is Cuatrecases constantly defending Russian mafia members?" (COMMENT: Cuatrecases is one of Spain's leading law firms. Its website, available in English, is
Cuatrecasas, Gonçalves Pereira.)
12. (C) Grinda stated that OC begins to accumulate both economic and political power when it begins to bid for contract tenders on civil works and infrastructure projects.
