Aleksandr Sakharovsky
Aleksandr Sakharovsky | |
---|---|
Born | 3 September 1909 |
Died | 12 November 1983 (aged 74) |
Espionage activity | |
Allegiance | Soviet Union |
Service branch | NKVD MGB KGB |
Service years | 1939 - 1975 |
Rank | General |
Aleksandr Michael Sakharovsky (Russian: Александр Михайлович Сахаровский; 3 September 1909 – 12 November 1983) was a
Highly respected by both KGB staff and allied services such as those of East Germany, Sakharovsky had experience himself in performing intelligence missions.[2]
Early life and career
Sakharovsky was born to a working-class family in
Demobilized in December 1934, Sakharovsky returned to Leningrad, initially working in political propaganda at the
World War II
In February 1939, Sakharovsky was transferred to work in the state security bodies (NKVD) on the recommendation of the party.[3] Taking advantage of his official position at the Baltic Sea Shipping Company, he was dispatched abroad for reconnaissance purposes for more than seven months, under the cover of being the assistant captain of the "Svaneti" passenger ship. He visited several countries of the Mediterranean Sea, including Greece and Italy. In August 1941, the First (Intelligence) Department was created in the NKVD Directorate for the Leningrad Region, in which Sakharovsky became deputy head. He rose to the rank of Major. The duties of Sakharovsky included the preparation of special groups to be sent behind enemy lines for sabotage and assassinations, as well as conducting defensive operations against German attempts at infiltration. In total, more than 40 reconnaissance and sabotage groups were created and sent behind German lines to perform sabotage and assassinations.[3]
Postwar Stalin Years
In 1945 Sakarovsky was transferred to the central office of the MGB, the precursor organization to the KGB, in Moscow. There he acted in support to Andrey Vyshinsky, a deputy Soviet People's Commissar of Foreign Affairs, during the incorporation of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania into the Soviet Union during the late 1940s.[4]
He was later chief of the second Information committee (KI) department, then
Apart from his work in building up the Romanian secret services, Sakharovsky was sent to perform intelligence missions in Finland, Greece and Turkey. As head of Section 7-A, he was responsible for foreign intelligence in Scandinavia, and then worked at 1-A Directorate, responsible for foreign "illegal" agents (those agents without diplomatic or official cover) in the First Chief Directorate of the MGB USSR.[6]
Chief of Foreign Intelligence
In May 1956 Sakharovsky was appointed head of First Chief Directorate of the KGB under the Council of Ministers of USSR, responsible for foreign operations and intelligence collection activities by the training and management of the covert agents, intelligence collection management, and the collection of political, scientific and technical intelligence. The first years of his tenure saw the creation of US military-political blocs,
Later life and death
From July 1971 to January 1975, he was Senior Adviser to the Chairman of the KGB, Yuri Andropov. Seriously ill, he suffered a stroke 1 February 1975 after which he retired. He died 12 November 1983 and was buried at Novodevichy Cemetery.
References
- Independent.co.uk. 8 December 2007. Archivedfrom the original on 2014-12-29.
- ^ Markus Wolf, Anne McElvoy, Man Without a Face: The Autobiography of Communism's Greatest Spymaster, p. 209, 1997, Jonathan Cape Ltd
- ^ a b Chapter 19, Mlechin L.M. History of the Foreign Intelligence Service.
- ^ a b Chapter 7, Disinformation: Former Spy Chief Reveals Secret Strategies for Undermining Freedom, Attacking Religion, and Promoting Terrorism, Ion Mihai Pacepa, Ronald J. Rychlak, 2013
- ^ Communist Terror in Romania: Gheorghiu-Dej and the Police State, 1948-1965, Dennis Deletant
- ISBN 978-83-11-13066-1(Original polish edition Gry wywiadów. Aparat centralny 1. Zarządu Głównego KGB, jako instrument realizacji globalnej strategii Kremla 1954-1991
- ^ "Arabski terroryzm pod szyldem KGB" [Arabic terrorism under the KGB brand]. www.rp.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2019-04-30.
- ^ "Генерал Сахаровский – теоретик автокатастроф и разработчик секретной вербовки" [General Sakharovsky - theorist of car crashes and secret recruitment]. versia.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2019-04-30.