Latest news with #DanielMartindale
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Putin rewards U.S. man with a Russian passport for spying in Ukraine
Moscow — An American who spied on Ukrainian troops to help Moscow's military offensive in the country has been granted Russian citizenship, Moscow-installed authorities said Tuesday. Daniel Martindale spent two years in Ukraine after Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, transmitting coordinates of military facilities to Russia's secret services, according to reports in Russian state media. "By decree of our President Vladimir Putin, a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation was awarded to Daniel Martindale," Denis Pushilin, the head of the Russian-occupied part of Ukraine's Donetsk region said on the Telegram messaging app, adding that Martindale had "long since proven with his loyalty and actions that he is one of us." "He spent more than two years in the territory under enemy control. And not only did he survive — he helped. He supported our guys, passed on important information to our special services, risked his life," he added. Martindale received his passport from interior ministry officials at a ceremony in Moscow, according to state media and a video published by Pushilin. Martindale thanked Russia for "accepting me," and said becoming a Russian citizen was a "dream." "Russia is not only my home, but my family," he said in Russian on the video. After two years spying on Ukraine, he was extracted in "a complex evacuation operation" after Moscow started to fear his life was in danger if he stayed any longer, Pushilin said. In November 2024, state media reported Russian security forces had taken him to Russia and Martindale lodged his application for Russian citizenship. A Telegram account purporting to be his posted that same month: "Hello, I'm Daniel Martindale, the guy that Russian soldiers risked their lives to evacuate from the village where I had lived for two years." Around that same time, Martindale told pro-Russian bloggers that he had arrived in Ukraine shortly before Russia launched its invasion, hoping to reach the Ukrainian border region of Donetsk. Martindale told the bloggers he had contacted Russian intelligence services on his own initiative and was told to go to the city of Vuhledar and wait for Russian forces to arrive. He said he remained in the city, pretending to be a missionary, until the fall of 2024, when Russian troops seized the city after a protracted battle. Ukrainian journalists have found some evidence to suggest that Martindale may have been recruited by Russian agencies years earlier, as he visited Russia between 2016 and 2019, taking university courses. According to some reports, he was deported from Russia in 2019 for violating labor laws. Trump pushes senators to make $9.4 trillion in spending cuts L.A. Mayor Karen Bass says National Guard deployment in city was "a misuse" of soldiers Mike Johnson breaks from Trump, calls on DOJ to release Epstein files Solve the daily Crossword
Russia Today
2 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
American who spied on Ukrainian troops for Russia tells his story to RT (VIDEO)
US-born Daniel Martindale, who was granted Russian citizenship this week after secretly providing battlefield intelligence to Russian troops while embedded with Ukrainian forces, has shared his story with RT's Rick Sanchez. The 34-year-old said witnessing Kiev's military shelling residential areas in Donbass was the tipping point that led him to switch sides. Appearing on the latest episode of Sanchez Effect, Martindale recounted that he began growing increasingly disillusioned with US foreign policy years before the conflict between Ukraine and Russia broke out. At some point, an affinity for Russia began to grow in him. 'I've been on my journey to starting a new life in Russia since 2015,' Martindale stated. In the run-up to the escalation of hostilities between Kiev and Moscow in February 2022, he remembered sensing that 'probably some kind of a war is about to start.' With this conviction, he resolved to be 'with people who believe in the same things that I do' and set off for Ukraine, telling everyone he was going to serve as a Christian missionary there. Deep-down, however, 'really I wanted to get home, to Russia,' Martindale added. Despite already having pro-Russian sentiments, the decision to start covertly providing Russian forces with intelligence came to Martindale after he had seen 'in the news what the Ukrainians were doing to Russian cities, what they call separatist cities in the Donbass.' According to Martindale, he initially offered his services to Russian troops via a Telegram channel specifically designed for Ukrainian soldiers who wanted to surrender. His activities mostly consisted of sharing the positions of Ukrainian forces, as well as their routes and schedules. The American was eventually evacuated to Russian-controlled territory in the fall of 2024. Recalling his time near the front, he claimed that Ukrainian forces were routinely using civilians as human shields. Commenting on being granted Russian citizenship on Tuesday, Martindale gushed that 'it's something that I've wanted for ten years,' likening the experience to being 'born a second time.' WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW BELOW
Japan Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
U.S. citizen who helped Russia from inside Ukraine granted Russian passport by Putin
Daniel Martindale, a U.S. citizen who helped the Kremlin target Ukrainian troops and was then spirited out of eastern Ukraine by Russian special forces, has received a Russian passport in Moscow. Russian state television broadcast a report on Tuesday showing Martindale, with a trim beard and dressed in a suit and tie, smiling as he received his new documents. "I, Daniel Richard Martindale, voluntarily and consciously accepting the citizenship of the Russian Federation, swear to observe the Constitution," he said in good Russian. "The belief that Russia is not just my home, but also my family — I am extremely glad that this is not only in my heart, but also by law," Martindale told television cameras, holding up the Russian passport. State media said Martindale had been granted the passport by order of President Vladimir Putin. Reuters was unable to reach Martindale. A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department declined to comment. A self-described Christian missionary, Martindale is one of many foreigners who have supported Russia during its war against Ukraine. But few foreigners are known to have provided key logistical support to Russia from inside Ukraine. Martindale grew to love Russia when he lived there in 2018, studying the language and teaching English in the Pacific port city of Vladivostok. Now in his early 30s, Martindale was living in Poland in the months before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. He had a sense that Russia would invade Ukraine, he later told InfoDefense, a pro-Russian media project, and wanted to be there when it happened. Martindale hopped on a bicycle and rode from Poland across the Ukrainian border that February. He was in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv when Russia launched its attack. "It was actually kind of exciting," he told InfoDefense in May. "I understood that the adventure I had been looking forward to was not going to be canceled." Over the next two years, Martindale made his way to eastern Ukraine, where he lived in a Ukrainian-held village near the front line in the Donetsk region. He planted carrots, sweet potatoes, and corn in his yard, and celebrated birthdays and holidays with villagers, he later told the Wall Street Journal. Secretly, Martindale was passing along information to pro-Russian troops, including details on Ukrainian military positions and other intelligence. On Tuesday, Denis Pushilin, the Moscow-installed leader of the Russian-controlled part of Donetsk region, praised Martindale, saying some of the information he had shared formed the basis for Russian planning to seize Kurakhove, a town near the key Ukrainian logistics hub of Pokrovsk. After two years of working as an informant for Russia, Martindale was spirited out of Ukraine by Russian forces as they took control of the village where he lived. At a press conference in Moscow last November, Martindale told reporters he had established contact with pro-Russian forces via Telegram. "For the last two years, I have done everything to save the lives of Russian soldiers and ensure some kind of future for Russians in Ukraine. I would like to continue doing this," he said. On Tuesday, Pushilin expressed gratitude to Martindale for his role in Russia's successes on the battlefield. The American "has long since proven with his loyalty and actions that he is one of us," Pushilin said. "For us, this (the Russian passport) is a sign of respect and a sign of gratitude for what Daniel has done."
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
American citizen granted Russian passport after spying for the Kremlin in Ukraine
A U.S. citizen who helped the Kremlin target Ukrainian troops has been granted a Russian passport in Moscow. Daniel Martindale, with a trim beard and dressed in a suit and tie, smiled as he received his new documents, as seen during a Russian state television broadcast a report on Tuesday. "I, Daniel Richard Martindale, voluntarily and consciously accepting the citizenship of the Russian Federation, swear to observe the constitution," he said in Russian. "The belief that Russia is not just my home, but also my family – I am extremely glad that this is not only in my heart, but also by law.' Martindale grew up on farms in upstate New York and Indiana, the child of missionaries who later moved to rural China, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Martindale speaks after receiving a Russian passport in Moscow (via Reuters) A brief trip over the border into Russia's Far East during the family's time in China sparked Martindale's interest in Russia. In 2018, Martindale, now in his early 30s, moved to Vladivostok, a Russian port city on the Pacific, where he studied Russian and taught English, before being deported a year later for violating labour laws, the Journal said. He moved to southern Poland, but was keen to return to Russia, the Journal said. In 2022, Martindale entered Ukraine just days before President Vladimir Putin ordered thousands of troops into Ukraine. Martindale told reporters at a press conference last November that he established contact with pro-Russian forces via Telegram and passed them information on Ukrainian military facilities from the Donetsk region in the country's east. Reuters was not able to contact Martindale to ask about his motivation for helping Russia. A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department declined to comment. On Tuesday, Denis Pushilin, the Moscow-installed leader of the Russian-controlled part of Donetsk region, presented Martindale with his Russian documents, which he said were awarded by a decree from Putin. Pushilin expressed gratitude to Martindale, saying some of the information he had shared formed the basis for Russian planning to seize Kurakhove, a town near the key Ukrainian logistics hub of Pokrovsk. Martindale "has long since proven with his loyalty and actions that he is one of us." "For us, this (the Russian passport) is a sign of respect and a sign of gratitude for what Daniel has done."
The Independent
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
American citizen granted Russian passport after spying for the Kremlin in Ukraine
A U.S. citizen who helped the Kremlin target Ukrainian troops has been granted a Russian passport in Moscow. Daniel Martindale, with a trim beard and dressed in a suit and tie, smiled as he received his new documents, as seen during a Russian state television broadcast a report on Tuesday. "I, Daniel Richard Martindale, voluntarily and consciously accepting the citizenship of the Russian Federation, swear to observe the constitution," he said in Russian. "The belief that Russia is not just my home, but also my family – I am extremely glad that this is not only in my heart, but also by law.' Martindale grew up on farms in upstate New York and Indiana, the child of missionaries who later moved to rural China, according to a Wall Street Journal report. A brief trip over the border into Russia's Far East during the family's time in China sparked Martindale's interest in Russia. In 2018, Martindale, now in his early 30s, moved to Vladivostok, a Russian port city on the Pacific, where he studied Russian and taught English, before being deported a year later for violating labour laws, the Journal said. He moved to southern Poland, but was keen to return to Russia, the Journal said. In 2022, Martindale entered Ukraine just days before President Vladimir Putin ordered thousands of troops into Ukraine. Respect and gratitude Martindale told reporters at a press conference last November that he established contact with pro-Russian forces via Telegram and passed them information on Ukrainian military facilities from the Donetsk region in the country's east. Reuters was not able to contact Martindale to ask about his motivation for helping Russia. A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department declined to comment. On Tuesday, Denis Pushilin, the Moscow-installed leader of the Russian-controlled part of Donetsk region, presented Martindale with his Russian documents, which he said were awarded by a decree from Putin. Pushilin expressed gratitude to Martindale, saying some of the information he had shared formed the basis for Russian planning to seize Kurakhove, a town near the key Ukrainian logistics hub of Pokrovsk. Martindale "has long since proven with his loyalty and actions that he is one of us." "For us, this (the Russian passport) is a sign of respect and a sign of gratitude for what Daniel has done."
