EYP’s internecine ‘wars of interests’: blunders, scandals, defunct ‘spy rings’ in sketchy past

By Vasilis Labropoulos

In the last 15 years, there have been at least 20 cases of suspicious actions or mistakes within the National Intelligence Service (EYP) that have had an impact on Greek politics and raise questions about EYP's modus operandi and objectives.

The recent case of the surveillance of the phone of PASOK-KINAL leader Nikos Androulakis is just the most recent "Act" in a series of problematical actions within EYP.

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EYP's past blunders, sketchy history

It is not only the 1999 case of PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) leader Abdullah Ocalan. who was kidnapped by the MIT Turkish intelligence service in Kenya [he had entered Greece illegally on a private jet and EYP flew him to Nairobi supposedly to offer him asylum in the Greek Embassy there in order to avoid a military clash with Turkey, where he was enemy number one], or the revelation in 1991 of the role of US Embassy employee Steven Lalas [who was spying for Greece and jailed in the US].

Over the last years, there have been revelations of other suspicious and unjustified cases of surveillance, machinations to embezzle funding, forged documents, and leaks of EYP documents that raise many questions.

The problem of underfunding of the secret services, the inertia or incompetence of certain civilian, military, and police employees that are incorporated in EYP with a pay bonus, the inadequate supervision of surveillance systems and of operational decisions, and major corruption cases, the exposure of "secret" investigations, and cases of incredible carelessness have over time led to a series of mistakes and censurable moves that have attracted public attention.

At various points over the...