There’s a basic distinction among spy services worldwide: those that conduct assassinations and those that don’t. America’s spy outfits, led by the Central Intelligence Agency, are in the former category. Today, the CIA tends to assassinate people with missile-armed drones and similar high-tech stand-off methods.

Not all countries do it from a distance, however. Some countries still conduct assassinations the old-fashioned way, up close with guns, bombs, and even poisons. No country today is more notorious for carrying out such hits abroad than Russia, where this dark art is termed “wetwork.” Under President Vladimir Putin, Russia’s spy agencies, what Moscow terms its “special services,” have witnessed a wetwork renaissance. One that has seen enemies of the Kremlin meeting unnatural ends in numerous countries over the last two decades.