About: Peter Earnest

Profile
I am the founding executive director of the International Spy Museum and a 35 year veteran of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). He served 25 years as a case officer in its Clandestine Service, primarily in Europe and the Middle East. I ran intelligence collection and covert action operations against a range of targets including Soviet Bloc representatives and Communist front organizations. At CIA Headquarters, I ran counterintelligence and double agent operations working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and military intelligence. I was chief of the task force in charge of the highest ranking Soviet defector to the U.S. Assigned to the Office of the Director of Central Intelligence, I served as an Inspector with the Inspector General, liaison with the U.S. Senate, and director of media relations and spokesman. A member of the Senior Intelligence Service, I received the CIA’s Medal of Merit and Career Intelligence Medal. I am the former President and Chairman of the Board of the Association for Intelligence Officers (AFIO) and still serve on the Board of Directors. I was the primary researcher for a book on the CIA’s top secret agent in Poland, “A Secret Life,” by New York Times reporter Ben Weiser and published by Public Affairs.

Posts by Peter Earnest: