Uruguayan journalist and writer Raúl Vallarino will release a new international edition of his novel "My Name is Patria", published by Dextra Editorial. This version incorporates previously unpublished chapters based on recent research in Russia about the KGB spy África de las Heras and her connection with a young Vladimir Putin.
The reissue, which will hit bookstores in Spain, Argentina, Mexico, and Latin America, delves deeper into the story of de las Heras, known by the code name "Patria", who for nearly two decades directed the Soviet espionage apparatus in Latin America from Uruguay and Argentina.
According to Vallarino's investigation, after retiring from active service in 1984, the Spanish spy worked as an instructor at the Moscow espionage academy, where she would have coincided with a young Vladimir Putin during his initial training as a KGB officer aspirant at School 401 in Okhta, Leningrad. According to documents and testimonies cited in the book, Putin would also have received private advice and guidance from "Patria" in Moscow, long before his rise to the top of the Kremlin.
To reconstruct the story, Vallarino gained access to sources in Moscow and St. Petersburg, including retired KGB Colonel Tamara Netyksa, who, along with her husband Vitaly, provided details about the Spanish spy's teaching work, as learned by the Argentine News Agency. The book also includes accounts of the training methods that de las Heras passed on to her students destined for missions in Spanish-speaking countries.
Vallarino's research also gave rise to the Russian state television documentary "Our Africa in Latin America", directed by journalist Sergey Brilev and scheduled for a premiere on an international platform in March 2026. The production will feature the participation of María de las Heras, the spy's great-niece, who traveled to Uruguay during filming, as well as former KGB students—including an agent who operated in the United States and Peru under a Uruguayan identity—and the current head of Russia's foreign intelligence services.
With this international version, "My Name is Patria" brings together material and testimonies linked to Soviet espionage and the role of África de las Heras, an agent who received the highest decorations from the Kremlin for her services within the Soviet intelligence structure.
