MOSCOW – George Blake, a former British intelligence officer who worked as a double agent for the Soviet Union, has died in Russia.
He was 98.Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service, known as SVR, announced his death Saturday in a statement, which didn't give any details.
Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed condolences, hailing Blake as a “brilliant professional” and a man of “remarkable courage.”“He made a truly invaluable contribution to ensuring strategic parity and preserving peace,” Putin said in a telegram.Blake has lived in Russia since his daring escape from a British prison in 1966 and was given the rank of Russian intelligence colonel.