Czechs to recruit more spies, warn about Russia

By Jan Korselt

PRAGUE (Reuters) - The Czech government wants the country's intelligence service to recruit more spies this year because of fears of terrorism and Russia's growing energy muscle, a document showed on Monday.

The centre-right cabinet has been keen to protect the Czech Republic's energy sector from the might of Russia, its main oil and gas supplier, since coming to power in January last year.

The interior ministry document, obtained by Reuters, proposed boosting spy ranks by 46 new operatives and analysts to counter growing security threats.

"It is possible that the Czech Republic will transform more and more from a purely logistics state to a state which terrorists will think of as a target," the document said.

"The Office has to (also) increase its analytical and operative capacities ... when supplies and prices of oil and natural gas are becoming tools of Russia's foreign policy, including attempts to control or use key Czech energy firms," it said.

The Office for Foreign Relations and Information (UZSI), the foreign intelligence service, could not be immediately reached for comment.

The Czechs, as well as their other ex-communist neighbors, are more dependent on Russian energy supplies than western Europe. Russian firms however do not own any significant Czech energy firms.

The Czech gas import monopoly Transgas, owned by Germany's RWE, has a supply deal with Russia's energy giant Gazprom until 2035.

In the electricity sector, talk of a possible sale of a bigger slice in the region's top power firm CEZ has gone quiet under the current government.

The cabinet has irked Moscow by talking to Washington about placing a U.S. radar station on Czech soil and interceptor missiles in Poland as part of what Washington says will be a global shield against "rogue" states like Iran or North Korea.

(Writing by Martin Dokoupil; editing by Andrew Roche)