The Big Breach - Index of

The Big Breach; From Top Secret to Maximum SecurityCompliments of http://www.192.comThe Tirana fiasco convinced the service that a shoe-box would onlysurvive and prosper if the local liaison service were dependent on MI6for money, training help and intelligence. Prospects for a shoe-boxstation in Skopje, the capital of the newly formed republic ofMacedonia, seemed more promising. The Macedonian economy was intatters. Trade with Serbia on its northern border had been stopped bythe UN sanctions. To the south the Greeks had closed the border andaccess to the port of Thessaloniki over fears that the reemergence ofthe Macedonian nation would cause unrest in their own province ofMacedonia; and communications with Albania to the west were poorbecause of the mountainous terrain. Relations with Bulgaria to the eastwere better, but even they were tempered by mistrust for theexpansionist ideas of some Bulgarian factions. Macedonia was thus allbut cut off from the outside world and urgently needed powerful allies.The Macedonian secret police were underfunded, and so were vulnerableto financial inducement. MI6 saw the opportunity and stepped in beforethe BND or the CIA. After some paper shuffling in Whitehall, anemergency aid package was negotiated by FCO and ODA officials. Britainwould supply urgently needed medical equipment and drugs; in returnMacedonia would harbour an MI6 officer. The Macedonian secret policewere further sweetened by a week-long training course at the Fort. Allstops were pulled out to impress them. They were very taken by ademonstration of some advanced surveillance communication equipment,and MI6 reluctantly acceded to their requests for the system, eventhough they had no possible need for it.Jonathan Small, an energetic and competent GS officer, was sent toSkopje to open the Macedonia shoe-box in December 1992. He had previousexperience in one-man stations such as Valletta in Malta, so was wellqualified for the job. He was declared to the Macedonian secret police,so there was no need for any cover story for them, but to stave off thecuriosity of casual acquaintances he set himself up as a charity workerwith credentials supplied by CF contacts. With his satellite dish onthe balcony of his one-bedroom flat in central Skopje, Small was soonsending back a stream of reports, mostly on President Gligorov'sdealings with Milosevic.MI6 also set up two more shoe-box stations in the Balkans. One seniorofficer was sent to Kosovo for three months under cover as an OSCE(Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe) observer, butthis was not a great success as the ruthless and omnipresent Serbiansecret police made it too dangerous to attempt any agent-running. Tocover Bosnia, MI6 drew on experience gained during OPERATION SAFEHAVEN, the allied operation to protect the Kurds from Iraqi reprisalsin the aftermath of the 1990 Gulf War. Clive Mansell, a mid-careerofficer and Kurdish speaker, was attached to the Royal Marines inKurdistan as their mysteriously entitled `civil adviser', mingling withthe refugee population to obtain intelligence on the nascent Kurdishnationalist movement. MI6 decided to try the same tactic in Bosnia andsent Mansell to Split with the British UNPROFOR (United NationsProtection Force) contribution to set up a shoe-box station under thedesignation H/BAP.By early 1993, all of these assets were in place and MI6's coverage ofthe Balkans was starting to meet some of the demands placed upon it.Meanwhile, String Vest assigned me to a role supporting Small inpage- 100 - To purchase the original limited edition hardback version of this bookplease call 08000 192 192 or go to http://www.192.com