Despite no US personnel operatives being on the ground in Russia, agency paramilitary officers are leading them (Getty Images)

A detailed report by investigative journalist, and former US Special Forces operative Jack Murphy outlined how the CIA is directing a clandestine sabotage effort from within Russian borders through access to an intelligence service of a European NATO member, according to former US intelligence and military sources.

The strategy, Murphy noted, incorporated long-standing sleeper cells established by the allied espionage service to thwart the Russian war effort in Ukraine by fighting a hidden battle behind Russian lines.

According to three former US intelligence officials, two former US military officials, and a US person briefed on the campaign, the campaign is responsible for many of the inexplicable explosions as well as other mishaps that have struck the Russian military-industrial complex since the beginning of the war in Ukraine.

Murphy, in his piece, stated that the former officials refused to name particular targets of the CIA-led campaign, however, he noted that railway bridges, fuel depots, and power facilities in Russia have all been destroyed in suspicious incidents since last February, hinting at the CIA-led operation within Russian borders.

Murphy explained that despite no US personnel being immediately involved on the ground in Russia for the execution of the assigned missions, two former intelligence officers and one former military official confirmed that "agency paramilitary officers are commanding and controlling the operations."

Significantly, Murphy highlighted that any covert action carried out by US agencies "must be authorized by a presidential finding."

Obama signed off on covert action against Russia

The Washington Post had previously reported that "after the US intelligence community concluded that Russia interfered with the 2016 presidential election, President Barack Obama signed a finding for covert action against Russia before he left office."

WashPo revealed, at the time, that the finding encompassed the National Security Agency, the military's Cyber Command, and a program to place "cyberweapons in Russia's infrastructure."

To explain the discrepancies between official media statements and the information from former CIA and military personnel, Murphy explained that under Title 50 of the United States Code, which allows covert activities, the CIA can constitutionally conceal the existence of these operations to everyone except the so-called "Gang of Eight."

Murphy's piece also highlighted the change in the position of NATO allies at the beginning of the war in Ukraine, and as the conflict escalated and dragged on. "As the conflict carried on, some NATO countries withdrew their assistance for behind-enemy-lines operations in Russia," he said, adding that the "political ramifications of such activities concerned several nations as the war progressed, but the United States and its key NATO ally in charge of the sabotage programs remained bold and forward-thinking."

It is worth noting that the investigative journalism news piece was shared on Jack Murphy's personal website and not via a renowned news agency for reasons that the writer has outlined and explained. He noted that journalists have failed, on several occasions, to explore how their organizations have come to resemble the institutions of power, which they pledge to speak the truth about. At some point, he stated, the relationships they establish with the "intelligence community and military commands become more important than informing the public."

The writer further explained that in return for publishing the piece, he was asked "to do things that were illegal and unethical in one instance, and in another instance I felt that a senior CIA official was able to edit my article by making off-the-record statements, before he leaked a story to the New York Times to undermine this piece."