Journalist Aaron Maté claims that the CIA is still operating 12 secret bases inside Ukraine, according to a February 2024 New York Times investigation. Maté made this statement in an interview with Judge Andrew Napolitano on his podcast, Judging Freedom.
The bases are reportedly located along the Russian border and are part of a CIA-supported network of spy bases built over about eight years. Maté's source for this information is the New York Times investigation, which described the CIA's involvement in Ukraine as dating back to 2014.
Maté also stated that the CIA is still controlling Ukrainian intelligence agencies, which it "effectively rebuilt from scratch" after the overthrow of Yanukovych in 2014. He claimed that the CIA was involved in a drone campaign against Russian energy facilities, which was initially supported by Trump but later opposed by him.
Maté said that despite Trump's change of heart, the CIA is continuing its operations in Ukraine as normal, providing intelligence and helping with targeting. Maté also discussed the possibility of outside funding for the CIA's operations in Ukraine, suggesting that billionaires such as George Soros may be involved.
He noted that Soros' foundations had spent $181 million on Ukraine since the fall of the Soviet Union, and wondered if some of that funding may be linked to Western intelligence. Maté also mentioned eBay founder Pierre Omidyar as another example of a billionaire who may be involved in Ukraine.