08 February 2024 , 11:06
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A suspected Russian spy found work at MI6 and even met King Charles, it has been claimed.
The man - who was given the name 'C2' - reportedly had access to top secret documents while working for the British government for more than a decade in the UK and Afghanistan.
He eventually obtained British citizenship, before later having it revoked by the Government in 2019 when MI5 concluded that he was a Russian agent.
C2, who had originally arrived in the UK as a refugee from Afghanistan, is currently appealing against the Government's decision in a hearing before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC). He claims to have also worked for GCHQ, MI6, the Ministry of Defence and the Home Office, among other high-profile institutions.
He is thought to have been an agent for the GRU, a branch of the Russian intelligence services who have been linked to the 2017 poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury. C2 met the then-Prince Charles and Prince William while on working visits to Afghanistan.
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C2 is reported to have first entered the UK in 2000 - and told authorities in the UK he was fleeing the Taliban, despite having already lived for six years in Moscow. At court on Tuesday, he told the SIAC that he had informed GCHQ that he had lied in his asylum application - but appeared to pass the most advanced form of security clearance, known as "developed vetting". The government has denied that he passed this vetting, and has not confirmed whether he ever worked for the intelligence services.
The man told the court that he worked under contract on other government departments and Nato after leaving GCHQ, later taking a role in Afghanistan with the Foreign Office. As well as meeting the royals, he is also said to have met David Cameron during his time as Prime Minister when he visited the nation
But he is said to have been in close contact with Russian officials during his time in Afghanistan, including military attachés who are alleged to have been GRU officers, reports The Times. He admitted in court that he had paid cash bribes to them, passed on commercial information, and had shared nude images of women.
Mr Justice Jay told the court: "I think it is being suggested to you that you would have to be pretty naive to think that someone like him [one of the GRU assets] was not a Russian military agent."
C2 was later taken in for interview by MI5 during a family visit to London, and accused of being a GRU agent. His contact with the agency is said to have started as early as five years old. He returned to Afghanistan in 2019, and was told later the same year that his citizenship had been revoked.
GCHQ Press Office told the Mirror they had no comment to offer on the case. The Home Office, Foreign Office, Ministry of Defence and Kensington Palace have been approached for comment.