ISBN 978-I-62097-375-2, The New Press, May 2021, 278 pages, $8.50 hardcover
Reviewed by: Mike Parrott, National Intelligence University Adjunct Instructor
Simon Kuper’s Spies, Lies, and Exile is a treasure trove of retrospective insights into one of the United Kingdom’s most destructive espionage cases. The detailed reflections captured in this book are recommended for examination by insider threat and counterintelligence professionals to gain a glimpse inside the mind of a trusted insider-turned-traitor. George Blake’s betrayal of friends, family, organization, and nation foreshadowed comparable American insiders like Aldrich Ames, Robert Hansen, Anna Montes, and countless others. Kuper’s comprehensive compilation of interviews, correspondence, and historical artifacts from various spy agencies provide first person accounts from the spies and spy catchers intimately involved in this case; specifically, Blake’s own account. As a journalist, Kuper, provides lay readers a detailed account of one of Britain’s own spies turned double agent and lengths one may go to commit espionage. Occurring during the Cold War, an age of espionage, double agents, and counterspies, this book is a valuable resource for current practitioners who are looking to enhance their understanding of the factors that drive an individual to commit espionage.
Spies, Lies, and Exile begins with George Blake, an imprisoned spy for the United Kingdom’s Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) also known as MI6, hiding in a Wormwood Scrubs Prison wall passageway in October 1966, preparing to escape. The book then transitions to Blake’s origin story in the quaint Dutch city of Rotterdam and his time living in a Jewish mansion in Cairo with his aunt after his father’s death in September 1936. Shortly thereafter, while visiting his home in the Netherlands for the summer, the Second World War broke out, resulting in his brief internment by the Germans. After successfully navigating his way to Britain, he joined the Navy as a midget submarine diver. Following an episode in which he blacked out underwater, Blake entered the espionage business with SIS. Blake’s prior experience in the resistance provided the SIS recruiter the bona fides for employment within the elusive agency. However, what the SIS failed to discover until it was too late, was Blake’s loyalties were not to Britain, but instead were with the anti-Nazi cause. A vetting error that proved costly for the spy agency in the future.
Blake’s conversion to Communism while in Korean captivity proved to be the catalyst that led to his ultimate betrayal of King and Country. According to Kuper, “Blake felt abandoned, unimportant, and wanted to prove himself,” a condition referred to in a recent Behavioral Threat Analysis Center Bulletin as “disgruntlement.” A cursory examination of some of the most destructive spy cases in history reveals individuals suffering from modest to severe disgruntlement and narcissism. Blake initially embraced Communism as a solution to his disgruntlement while being a prisoner-of-war in Korea. Kusper explains, “Blake felt abandoned, unimportant, and wanted to prove himself.” During his time working for the KGB (the Soviet Union’s foreign intelligence and domestic security agency) Blake used the agency for his own selfish purpose. This ideological shift would be his downfall in the end, but not before destroying and negatively impacting the lives of numerous agents, sources, and organizations. Amid Kim Philby and George Blake’s espionage activities from 1945 to 1963 approximately 400 British intelligence officers and assets were compromised to the Soviets. A large number were captured, tortured, and put to death for his treacherous admissions.
The book concludes with Blake sheltering inside his home in Russia amid the coronavirus pandemic. He never regretted his actions. Instead, he reminisced and enjoyed the life in exile he made for himself, despite the grave damage he caused so many others. He died at the age of 98 in 2020, A life wrought with treachery, lies, deceit, and betrayal.
In an era of strategic competition, it behooves U.S. and allied leaders, military officials, academics, and industry partners to pay attention to historical vignettes like Blake’s. Aggrieved trusted insiders pose a significant threat to national security. Indeed, espionage cases continue to make the news, ranging from U.S. Naval personnel selling secrets to China to the Special Agent in Charge of the New York FBI Counterintelligence Division conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions against Russia. While these spies have been caught and made the news, what should be concerning for all leaders and security professionals are the ones who remain unnoticed and unreported. Only through effective leadership, persistence and vigilant counterintelligence activities and counter-insider threat programs will the United States be successful in detecting, identifying, and countering threats like these. As both a learning tool and espionage classic, Spies, Lies, and Exile is an excellent addition to a counterintelligence practitioner’s bookshelf.
