Czech: Intelligence head says resigned over uncovering corruption

Military counter-intelligence chief Miroslav Krejčík says former StB officers intentionally interfered in counter-intelligence operations.


Czech intelligence head says resigned over uncovering corruption

Prague- Miroslav Krejcik, former director of the Military Intelligence, said today he had to leave the post because the intelligence started to uncover corruption at the Defence Ministry.
Some people are now doing their utmost to find a piece of information that would denigrate him, he said in the Questions of Vaclav Moravec discussion programme on Czech Television (CT).
Defence Minister Vlasta Parkanova would not comment on Krejcik's words.
The ministry's spokesman Andrej Cirtek told CTK that Krejcik should publish any information on corruption he may have.
"We welcome it and we wish it. We regret that he did not do so when he was still in the post," Cirtek said.
Krejcik said the Defence Ministry was reluctant to deal with the armed forces' financial management.
He said he met Parkanova only three times. Parkanova became minister in January. Krejcik left the post in end-May by himself though he previously reached agreement with Parkanova that he will resign in the autumn.
Krejcik said he has accepted an offer from the opposition Social Democrats (CSSD) to be a member of the party's security commission.
The military was criticised several times in connection with suspicious orders for millions of crowns.
Krejcik said the intelligence inflitrated groups suspected of corrutipn. He said, however, that he has no information about bribery of political parties.
Krejcik said his departure could have threatened some cases.

($1=20.544 crowns)

Many StB officers served in Czech intelligence until 2003

by Prague Daily Monitor/ČTK / published 27 February 2007
CTKMilitary counter-intelligence chief Miroslav Krejčík says former StB officers intentionally interfered in counter-intelligence operations.A number of former officers of the StB, communist Czechoslovakia's secret police, served in Czech counter-intelligence until 2003, military counter-intelligence (VZ) chief Miroslav Krejčík says.
These officers intentionally marred the service's work, Krejčík told yesterday's issue of Mladá front Dnes.
By the end of 2003, a total of 40 former StB officers and dozens of StB agents had to leave the military counter-intelligence, where they occupied high posts of almost all section heads as well as the defence intelligence chief.
"It was a hard fight to make them leave. They abused all possible contacts, including the Government Office and some deputies," Krejčík told MfD.
Krejčík, however, mentioned no concrete damage these people caused to the service. He only said they had kept facts and information "inconvenient to them" secret.
"They sabotaged the work of the military counter-intelligence service," Krejčík told the paper.
He noted that the former StB officers had even been promoted within the counter-intelligence since they had succeeded in obtaining negative lustration certificates.
It was former military counter-intelligence head Petr Pelc who allegedly granted them security vettings.
"I am convinced that [Pelc] was expediently misled by these people whom I later fired," Krejčík told MfD, adding that personal data on former StB officers were intentionally withheld from Pelc.
Following the MfD report, Euro Online reported that Krejčík would leave his post this year. VZ spokesman Ladislav Šticha dismissed the information as speculation.
Euro Online said that two former intelligence officers linked with the current government coalition are interested in the post are Jiri Růžek (KDU-CSL), former director of the military counter-intelligence, and Pelc, who is close to the senior ruling Civic Democratic Party (ODS).
Šticha said he objected to the Euro Online report, saying it was based on two unnamed sources. "The main actors, or two political parties and General Krejčík, are not quoted and they were not even addressed," Šticha said.
Krejčík has headed the military intelligence and counter-intelligence service since 2004.
VZ provides information on military threats to the Czech Republic, and it also gathers and assesses information indicating the risk of terrorism, organised crime and sabotage.
This story copyright 2007 ČTK Czech News Agency




Agreement over candidature of a general to head Czech military secret service

Czech Defence Minister Vlasta Parkanova proposed to the lower house security committee to appoint Ondrej Palenik as new director of the military secret service, CTK reported.
The committee has agreed on Palenik's nomination which is to yet to be confirmed by the government. Palenik previously commanded a special military unit in Prostejov, south Moravia, which participated in a mission to Afghanistan twice. He was promoted to the rank of general some time ago and now he works at the Czech military staff headquarters.
The military secret service, including the military intelligence and counter-intelligence, is now provisionally headed by Pavel Adam as former regular head Miroslav Krejcik resigned a few weeks ago. The structure of Czech secret services has recently been widely discussed. The government committee for intelligence services has recommended that the the Czech Republic have two secret services, the intelligence and the counter-intelligence, instead of the current three, Interior Minister Ivan Langer said in early June.
As a result, the civilian intelligence UZSI is to merge with the military intelligence and the civilian counter-intelligence BIS with the military counter-intelligence. The military intelligence and counter-intelligence services merged several years ago. The intelligence reform plan should be completed this autumn.