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Previously on Hot Money.

He would probably be interested to take the Russian side

because for him, Russia would be acting properly and more correct than the West, for example.

I would say that we are actually at the doorstep of a new ideological war,

where this counts again as a motive for becoming an agent, for becoming an informer,

because you want to contribute in this geopolitical

power struggle going on between east and west.

It was a bitterly cold morning in February 2018.

In Vienna, the snow in the gutters and on the rooftops had hardened into grey ice.

At a busy intersection on the outskirts of the city stand two tall white stucco buildings,

set at a right angle to each other, over-decorated with pediments and such in the usual Viennese imperial style.

Between the two buildings is a huge armoured grey gate.

There's no sign, no indication at all of what this place is, just a small plaque that tells

you its property managed by the government. But every window is mirrored in dark blue iridescent

glass. This is the BVT, the Bundesamt for

Vafsonschuts and Terrorismos Bekemfung, Austria's intelligence agency. At first, it seemed like

a routine visit. The buzzer for the outer gate sounded, and the duty watchman

saw the image of a single individual dressed in civilian clothes flicker up on his screen.

The visitor holds up a police ID badge, and he says he has a meeting in the building.

The watchman flicks a switch to operate the first gate, and the policeman swings through the big iron single-person turnstile.

He steps into a grey room on the other side. And it's at this point that things take an unexpected turn.

...