Marc Polymeropoulos
Marc Polymeropoulos | |
|---|---|
| Born | Marc E. Polymeropoulos Athens, Greece |
| Alma mater | Cornell University |
| Occupation | Intelligence officer |
| Known for | Possible Havana syndrome carrier |
Marc E. Polymeropoulos is a former American intelligence officer who served 26 years in the Central Intelligence Agency's Directorate of Operations, retiring in June 2019 as a member of the Senior Intelligence Service.[1] His final position was overseeing CIA clandestine operations in Europe and Eurasia.[1] He is one of the individuals who have reported symptoms consistent with Havana syndrome and has been a public advocate for affected intelligence officers.[2]
Early life
Polymeropoulos was born in Athens, Greece, to a Greek father and Jewish-American mother.[3] He moved to the United States shortly after his birth.[4]
Career
Polymeropoulos served multiple overseas assignments as chief of station and deputy chief of station in Europe, Asia, and high-threat environments.[1] He specialized in counterterrorism, the Middle East, and South Asia, serving extensively in Iraq and Afghanistan.[1] He received the Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal, the Distinguished Intelligence Medal, the Intelligence Medal of Merit, and the Intelligence Commendation Medal.[5]
Polymeropoulos holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from Cornell University.[6]
Havana syndrome
In December 2017, while serving as deputy chief of CIA clandestine operations for Europe and Eurasia, he traveled to Moscow on official business.[2] He reported waking in his hotel room experiencing vertigo, nausea, and ringing in his ears.[7][2] The symptoms persisted after his return to the United States, and he was eventually diagnosed with occipital neuralgia.[8]
He stated that the CIA's Office of Medical Services initially determined his symptoms were not consistent with those of diplomats affected in Havana.[9] He retired from the CIA in 2019, citing his inability to work due to persistent headaches.[8] He has publicly attributed his condition to a possible directed-energy attack and has called for greater government support for affected officers.[9] He was a key public advocate for the HAVANA Act of 2021, which provided compensation to affected personnel and passed unanimously in both chambers of Congress.[10]
Polymeropoulos has been featured in major investigative reporting on Havana syndrome, including Julia Ioffe's 2020 GQ investigation "The Mystery of the Immaculate Concussion"[7] and the CBS News 60 Minutes investigation.[11]
He has also briefed the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence on anomalous health incidents.[12]
Post-CIA career
After retiring, he authored Clarity in Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the CIA, published by HarperCollins in June 2021.[5] The book was reviewed by the CIA's Center for the Study of Intelligence.[13]
He is a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, specializing in hybrid warfare.[1] He has written for The Washington Post, The New York Times, Politico, Foreign Affairs, and Lawfare, and contributes a weekly column to the Washington Examiner.[1] He has appeared on PBS NewsHour, CNN, NPR, MSNBC, and BBC.[1]
Hunter Biden laptop letter
In October 2020, he co-drafted with former acting CIA director Michael Morell a public letter stating that emails from a laptop belonging to Hunter Biden, reported by the New York Post, had "all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation."[14] The letter was signed by 51 former intelligence officials.[15]
In April 2023, he testified before the House Judiciary Committee and House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence in a transcribed interview.[16] He stated that Morell told him that "someone from kind of the Biden world had asked for this".[16] He testified that he believed Joe Biden mischaracterized the letter when citing it during a presidential debate, and acknowledged the authenticity of the laptop's contents.[17]
On January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order revoking the security clearances of the letter's signatories.[18]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Marc Polymeropoulos". Atlantic Council. Archived from the original on June 16, 2025. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
- 1 2 3 Dilanian, Ken (December 8, 2020). "CIA officer suffered crippling symptoms in Moscow. Was it 'Havana Syndrome'?". NBC News. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
- ↑ "SALT — Marc Polymeropoulos: Clarity in Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the CIA | SALT Talks #222". SALT. June 8, 2021.
- ↑ Papadopoulos, Pavlos (April 22, 2022). "'A classic David-vs-Goliath story' | eKathimerini.com". www.ekathimerini.com.
- 1 2 "Clarity in Crisis". HarperCollins. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
- ↑ "Former CIA Officer Brings Principles of Leadership to VMI". Virginia Military Institute. February 8, 2024. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
- 1 2 Ioffe, Julia (October 20, 2020). "The Mystery of the Immaculate Concussion". GQ. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
- 1 2 Myre, Greg (October 27, 2020). "A CIA Officer Visits Moscow, Returns With Mysterious, Crippling Headaches". NPR. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
- 1 2 Herridge, Catherine (June 14, 2021). "Former CIA officer details "Havana Syndrome" he says he suffered in Moscow: "An act of war"". CBS News. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
- ↑ Atwood, Kylie (February 24, 2021). "CIA launches task force to probe invisible attacks on US diplomats and spies as one victim finds some relief". CNN. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
- ↑ Pelley, Scott; Chasan, Aliza; Zill de Granados, Oriana; Rey, Michael (December 5, 2024). "Foreign adversary was likely behind Havana Syndrome, House Intelligence leaders say". CBS News. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
- ↑ "Havana Syndrome: American Officials Under Attack". Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
- ↑ "Review: Clarity in Crisis" (PDF). Studies in Intelligence. Central Intelligence Agency. December 2021. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
- ↑ Dilanian, Ken; Collier, Kevin (February 24, 2024). "Former U.S. spies warned in 2020 that the Hunter Biden scandal had Russian fingerprints". NBC News. Retrieved January 2, 2026.
- ↑ Cohen, Zachary; Herb, Jeremy (May 10, 2023). "House Republicans say CIA staffer helped seek support for statement from former intel officials questioning Hunter Biden laptop story". CNN. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
- 1 2 "Interview of Marc Polymeropoulos" (PDF). House Committee on the Judiciary. April 17, 2023. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
- ↑ Langan, Jake (July 4, 2024). "Hunter Biden Laptop Letter: Ex-Intel Officials Blame Media, Joe Biden for Fallout". National Review. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
- ↑ "Trump revokes security clearances of former officials who signed Hunter Biden laptop letter with executive action". CNN. January 21, 2025. Retrieved November 28, 2025.