George Blake, traitor, dies

He will no doubt receive huge obituaries in all major newspapers. But George Blake, arch traitor to his country responsible for the capture and death of dozens of western agents working undercover in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, deserves an obituary that is as short as the headline on this blog. He had lived in a flat in Moscow since his escape from Wormwood Scrubs prison in 1966 after being sentenced to 42 years. Instead of being in a prison cell for the rest of hs life, he lived very comfortably in his KGB-provided apartment until his death at the age of 98. Espionage in the Cold War era was all about treachery. There were so many Blakes in the UK, not least the infamous Cambridge Five, Harold Kim Philby, Guy Burgess, Donald Maclean, Anthony Blunt and John Cairncross. All guilty of betraying their fellow men and women and their country because for a reason that can never be comprehended they believed the Soviet Communist system and ideology was fairer and more humane than anything the West could provide. Blake had less reason than any of them to stick to the Russian way of life. He lived much longer than the Cambridge Five. So for 20 years he had lived under the protection of Vladimir Putin, former KGB officer. Blake by all accounts had no regrets. No shame. For that reason he deserves no obituary. John Le Carre who died this month aged 89 might have agreed. His thriller spy novels were all about betrayal. He understood the psyche of traitors but as a former MI6 officer himself, despised them. Blake remained aloof from the rest of the world in his guarded life in Moscow. Putin and co honoured him for what he did for the Russian Motherland. For MI6 and for his country he was the man of dishonour. A traitor to the core. So no farewell.