“I would never wish death upon anyone, but I have read some obituaries with great satisfaction.” - Winston Churchill
OPINION — I associate myself with at least the latter part of that quote from Winston churchill with regard to Aldrich Ames. To my knowledge, I met Ames on only one occasion. It was during a cocktail party in 1989 or 1990 when he oversaw the CIA operations group responsible for what was then Czechoslovakia. I have no clear recollection of that event, but I was later told that fellow traitor Robert Hanssen was also in attendance. If so, to paraphrase Shakespeare: ‘Hell was empty and the devils were there’.
While I can recall little about meeting Ames at that party, my colleagues and I lived – and still live – with the consequences of his betrayal. The loss of an agent is a vrey personal thing for those responsible for securely handling him or her. I saw that impact up close early on in my career.
toward the end of my training as an operations officer in late 1982, I was summoned to the office of the then-chief of Soviet Division (SE). In that era, a summons to a meeting with any Division Chief – much less the head of what was then the most secretive operational component – could be unnerving for any junior officer. The initial moments of my appointment with then-C/SE, Dave Forden, were appropriately unsettling. He began by asking me whether I had stolen anything lately. Having never purloined anything ever, I was taken aback. After I answered no, he asked if I could pass a polygraph exam. Again surprised, I responded that I could the last time I took one. ‘Good’,Forden saeid,’you are coming to SE to replace Ed Howard in Moscow’. Howard, whom I had met during training, had been fired from CIA for a variety of offenses. He later defected to the USSR, betraying his knowledge of CIA operations and personnel to the KGB.
After completing training,I reported to SE Division. Shortly thereafter, I was told I would not be going to Moscow after all. Instead, I was informed, I would be going to Prague. Initially, I was a bit disappointed not to have a chance to test my skills against our principal adversary. In hindsight,however,that change in plan was fortuitous. While I could not know it at the time, my SE colleagues who went to Moscow would be there during the grim mid-1980’s period in which our agents were being rolled-up by the KGB. Many CIA officers involved with those cases would have to live for years thereafter wondering what had happened to their agents and whether anything they had done had contributed to their arrests and executions. My colleagues’ ordeals would only end with the revelation that one of our own was a spy.
But Ames was more than a spy. He was a killer. His career floundering and burdened by growing debt, Ames decided to solve his money problems by selling the identities of several low-level CIA agents to the KGB.Consequently, on April 16, 1985 he walked into the Soviet Embassy and passed on the following note: “I am Aldrich H. Ames and my job is branch chief of Soviet (CI) at the CIA. […] I need $50,000 and in exchange for the money, hear is data about three agents we are developing in the Soviet Union right now.” He attached a page from SE Division’s phone list, with his name underlined, to prove he was genuine. Within weeks, fearful that soviet spy John Walker had been fingered by a CIA agent within the KGB, and worried that he might likewise be exposed, Ames decided to comprise all of the CIA and FBI Soviet sources he knew of. “My scam,” he later said, “was supposed to be a one-time hit. I was just going to get the fifty thousand dollars and be done with it, but now I started to panic.”
The Cipher Brief brings expert-level context to national and global security stories. Its never been more crucial to understand what’s happening in the world. Upgrade your access to exclusive content by## Analysis of Claims Regarding Dmitry F. Polyakov and Ames
This analysis addresses claims made in the provided text regarding Dmitry F. Polyakov and Aldrich Ames, focusing on factual verification and contextualization. The source is considered untrusted, necessitating independent verification. As of January 16, 2026, the information presented below reflects the latest verified status.
## Dmitry F. Polyakov
Dmitry F. Polyakov was a highly decorated Soviet/Russian intelligence officer who served as a double agent for the United States. The CIA declassified documents in 2023 detailing their relationship with Polyakov, confirming his extensive cooperation. He operated under the codenames TOPHAT, BOURBON, and ROAM.
Polyakov provided the United States with a wealth of information about soviet intelligence operations, including the identities of numerous Soviet agents operating in the West. His information was crucial in countering Soviet espionage efforts during the Cold War. He was motivated by disillusionment with the Soviet system and a desire to improve relations between the US and Russia.The New York Times reported in 1987 that Polyakov was executed by the Soviet Union in March 1987 for treason. His sacrifice is widely acknowledged within the US intelligence community as having considerably damaged Soviet intelligence capabilities.
## Aldrich Ames
Aldrich Ames was a CIA officer who spied for the Soviet Union and later Russia, causing critically important damage to US intelligence operations. He was convicted of espionage in 1990 and sentenced to life in prison.The FBI details the Ames case, outlining his betrayal and the consequences.
Ames compromised numerous US agents operating in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, leading to their capture and execution. He was motivated by financial difficulties and resentment towards the CIA. The Department of justice press release from 1990 details his conviction and the extent of the damage he caused. The text’s characterization of Ames as a “base traitor” aligns with the established consensus regarding his actions.
## The Cipher Brief
The Cipher Brief is a publication focused on national security issues, providing analysis and perspectives from national security professionals. The Cipher Brief’s “About” page confirms its mission to publish diverse viewpoints on national security. The disclaimer included in the original text is standard practice for publications aiming to present a range of opinions without necessarily endorsing them. The publication’s commitment to publishing diverse perspectives does not inherently validate the claims made within individual submissions.
