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Loading... Betrayal: The Story of Aldrich Ames, an American Spy (original 1995; edition 1995)by Tim Weiner, David Johnston, Neil A. Lewis
Work InformationBetrayal:: The Story of Aldrich Ames, an American Spy by Tim WEINER (1995)
  
None No current Talk conversations about this book.  PokPok | Sep 6, 2020 |    ) bermandog | May 1, 2016 |  ) sacredheart25 | Aug 11, 2010 | no reviews | add a review
The remarkable story of the last American spy of the Cold War: Aldrich "Rick" Ames, the most destructive traitor in the history of the Central Intelligence Agency Tim Weiner, David Johnston, and Neil A. Lewis, reporters for The New York Times, tell how the barons of the CIA could not believe that its headquarters harbored a traitor. For years, the Agency was baffled by a wily Russian spymaster who played a high-stakes chess game against the Americans, deceiving the CIA into thinking that there were other moles--or no moles at all. It took nearly eight years for the CIA to share the full facts of the scenario with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Once they knew those facts, the men and women of the FBI tracked Aldrich Ames day and night for nine months before they arrested him. They tell their story here in astonishing detail for the first time. The interviews are entirely on-the-record. There are no pseudonyms, anonymous quotes, or invented scenes. The men betrayed by Ames were real people, and the stories of their lives are the true history of the espionage game in the waning years of the Cold War. No library descriptions found. |
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 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)327.12Social sciences Political Science International Relations Foreign policy and specific topics in international relations Espionage and subversionLC ClassificationRatingAverage: (3.67)
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Wikipedia in English (2)
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From the back cover: For years the CIA could not believe that its headquarters harbored a traitor. FOr years, the Agency was baffled by a wily Russian spymaster who played a high stakes game against Americans, deceiving the CIA into thinking that there were other moles - or no other moles at all. Betrayal describes Ames' meetings with his Soviet handlers in Washington, Rome, and Bogota, and his confrontation with his wife when he first shared the truth about his treason. The book details the befuddlement of CIA officers who tried, in fits and starts, to find the traitor. It took nearly 8 years for the CIA to share the full facts of the investigation with the FBI. Once they knew those facts, the men and women of the FBI tracked Ames day and night for nine months before they arrested him.
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I found this book interesting and engaging, but at times much too detailed.. It interwove the stories of Ames and the people trying to figure out if the CIA had a mole, and who he was. The main evidence was that the Soviet spies for the US were being murdered or "disappeared" by the KGB. It wasn't clear who was who and the problem solvers story was weak. Ames was more compelling, and by his own admission, he was in it for the money. He did not have a ideological cause, though when pressed, said he aligned more with KGB. Basically, a selfish person who felt he should have been higher level than he was, so he sold out his country. (