This is a historic moment. Alexander Bortnikov, the director of FSB, Russia’s national security agency, has announced that his services will work with US authorities to identify and arrest cybercriminals. “We will collaborate with the United States but hope for reciprocity” declared the director of the FSB, during a press conference in Moscow.
Earlier, Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that Russia has managed to establish a very clear process of collaboration with the United States. The FSB is now waiting for Washington’s response to start consultations and discussions.
A marriage of convenience
The announcement comes almost a week to the day after the meeting between President of the United States Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin. During the summit, the two heads of state defined a series of subjects on which the two states could collaborate. Regarding cybercrime, Russia and the United States have established very clear limits. Critical infrastructure will need to remain safe from cybercrime attacks. Washington expects close collaboration from the FSB at this level to prevent attacks on American infrastructure from Russian soil. The Russian government has always denied any involvement in these attacks. The rapprochement of the two countries aims to allow the arrest of cybercriminals and cybercriminal organizations that would operate from Russian or American soil and would be likely to hamper relations between the two countries. It is also speculated that the two countries could also collaborate in the arrest of notorious cybercriminals and the dismantling of hacking networks.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu also spoke at length about the situation in Europe, with the deployment of missiles on European soil which threatens mutual trust. The Kremlin accuses NATO of not cooperating on the matter. “The situation in Europe is explosive, it requires de-escalation” said Sergei Shoigu, before adding “to be ready to move in this direction. “
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