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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr Bortnikov, comrades,

Today, at the expanded meeting of the Board you will review your performance last year and discuss your immediate priorities, including in the context of the strategic objectives outlined in my Address to the Federal Assembly on February 29.

First, I would like to say that in 2023, the Service personnel demonstrated competence and efficiency across all spheres of their operation, reaffirming the high status and prestige of the Service as a key element in ensuring the national security and sovereignty of Russia.

You focused on fulfilling the tasks related to the special military operation. You reliably protected our constitutional order and thwarted attempts to interfere in our internal affairs, including during the recent elections. You guarded public safety. Acting in difficult conditions and often during hostilities, you protected our state border and scored new achievements in the fight against terrorism and extremism.

I would like to express gratitude to the FSB personnel for their professionalism and courage and for everything you have done for our Motherland during the complicated and extremely responsible period under review.

Our utmost appreciation is reserved for those who undertook extremely difficult missions in Donbass and Novorossiya, risking their lives to fulfil operational and combat intelligence and counterintelligence tasks.

Of course, we will never forget the Service personnel who have fallen in the line of duty and will always support their families. The heroism of our comrades in arms, just like the courage shown by the heroes of the Great Patriotic War and all defenders of the freedom and independence of our Motherland, will forever serve as a guiding light for the current and future generations of security service personnel.

Comrades,

The challenges we are facing and attempts to undermine our development require from us systemic, consistent efforts in all areas – in the economy, technology, culture, the social sector and the consolidation of our government and public institutions. The most important guarantee of success in achieving these goals is the protection of national sovereignty and the security of our people against external and internal threats. I have said this many times and we all understand this.

Therefore, the people of our country, the people of Russia expect the Federal Security Service (FSB) and all officers of Russian security services to display utmost concentration and high commitment, productive and proactive measures.

As I said earlier, the most critical and intense aspect of your work today is undoubtedly related to the special military operation. You are facing a broad range of tasks in this respect. I commend your efforts in neutralising enemy agents, terrorist cells and subversive groups, as well as your successful operations at the front and behind enemy lines, along with counterintelligence support for military units and formations.

I urge you to continue your consistent efforts to strengthen the personnel and technical capabilities of FSB units in the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Lugansk People’s Republic and the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions. I must emphasise the importance of fully understanding the situation on the ground and relying on the support of the people and our experience of countering international terrorism. Moreover, maintaining close collaboration with the local authorities is crucial.

I would like to note at this point that at one time the West actively used various cross-border radical and terrorist groups and, in part, encouraged their aggression against Russia.

Predictably, the neo-Nazi Kiev regime has also switched to terrorist tactics – with similar external support and often under direct instructions. This includes the shelling of peaceful cities, assaults on government officials and public figures, and attempts to recruit perpetrators of subversive and terrorist attacks targeting critical infrastructure and public spaces in Russia.

I would also like to recall the recent provocative statements by a number of official Western structures regarding potential terrorist attacks in Russia. All these actions resemble outright blackmail and the intention to intimidate and destabilise our society. You are well aware of them, so I will not go into details at this point.

I am asking the Federal Security Service, together with other special services and law enforcement agencies, to step up their counter-terrorist efforts in all areas in a meaningful way with the National Anti-Terrorism Committee playing its coordinating role. We must understand that we are dealing with a formidable and dangerous adversary who has a wide range of informational, technical, and financial tools up its sleeve. Make no mistake, we know what they are capable of in all these areas, including in terms of intelligence gathering, and we are aware of the terrorist methods they use too. Suffice to mention the bombing of the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea. They would resort to anything.

In this context, the units in charge of defending the constitutional form of government and fighting extremism pursue important objectives. You must be firm and prompt in stopping short any attempts to sow discord, provoke inter-ethnic conflicts and violate the rights and freedoms of our people, as well as attempts to exploit Russophobia or any other intolerant ideology.

In this regard, our counter-intelligence bodies play an instrumental role, including when it comes to combatting terrorism and extremism, since it is the same Western special services which are behind their manifestations, and on other important fronts.

This includes neutralising reconnaissance and sabotage efforts by the Western special services, protecting strategic confidential information, including data stored in the state and military administration systems, as well as information on advanced technologies and solutions for the military and other sectors we are currently working on. The adversary sees that we have it all and that there is a lot of positive momentum. It is obvious that they are targeting us in this context too.

Moving on, much has been done lately to strengthen the state border, especially sections of it that de facto run through the combat zone. Border control units received additional manpower, the latest weapons and equipment.

To be continued.