https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-dec-30-mn-3494-story.html?repost=true
Almost immediately, Platt found that despite his secret mission to recruit Vasilenko, he was being charmed by the Russian. “Halfway through the game I realized, I really like this guy,” he recalled in an interview.
Platt persisted, even though Vasilenko showed no interest in the American’s blandishments.
“I never stopped trying to recruit him,” sighed Platt. “But he never crossed the line.” The best evidence: Vasilenko never told Platt about Pelton, who wasn’t caught until he was compromised by a Soviet defector, KGB officer Vitaly Yurchenko, in 1985.
Instead, Vasilenko tried to turn the tables, asking Platt to work for the KGB, with dismal results. Platt recalls telling Vasilenko: “What in the hell can you offer me?”
Through their awkward espionage courtship, Platt and Vasilenko gradually discovered they were soul mates--streetwise risk-takers who shared a voracious love for the spy game and a disdain for the faceless bureaucrats back at headquarters.