Difference between revisions of "State Security Committee"

Revision as of 23:19, 31 January 2006

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Emblem of the State Security Committee.

The State Security Committee (Russian: Комите́т Госуда́рственной Безопа́сности; Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti) or KGB (transliteration of "КГБ") is the Russian-language acronym for State Security Committee, is the main intelligence and security agency within the Soviet Union. It is known by many names including:

• the Agency
• the Centre
• the Bosses

From March 13, 1954 to November 6, 1991 KGB was the umbrella organisation name for:

• the principal Soviet security agency;

• the principal intelligence agency;

• the principal secret police agency.

Roughly, the KGB's operational domain encompassed functions and powers like those once exercised by the United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the counterintelligence (internal security) division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Federal Protective Service, and the Secret Service.

In March 1953, Lavrenty Beria consolidated the MVD and the MGB into one body--the MVD; within a year, Beria was executed and MVD was split. The re-formed MVD (now Commissariat of the Interior) retained its police and law enforcement powers, while the second, new agency, KGB, assumed internal and external security functions, and was subordinate to the Political Bureau. On July 5, 1978, the name of the sections of the government changed from "ministries" to "commissariats"; thus, the MVD became the Commissariat of the Interior.

Responsibilities and tasks

Its tasked responsibilities were external espionage, counter-espionage, the liquidation of anti-Soviet and counter-revolutionary organisations within the Soviet Union, guarding the national borders, guarding the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union|Party]] and State leaders, and critical state property. Also, it investigated and prosecuted thieves of State and socialist property and white collar criminals. Unlike Western intelligence agencies, the KGB (theoretically) is uninterested in learning the enemy's intentions - only their capabilities.

In espionage, the KGB mostly relied on human intelligence (HUMINT), unlike their Western counterparts, who relied more on technology - imagery intelligence (IMINT) and signals intelligence (SIGINT). Using ideological attraction, the Soviets successfully recruited many high-level spies. Most notable are the KGB successes in gathering US atomic secrets, and, in the UK, the Cambridge Five, especially Kim Philby of the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS).

Currently, the KGB has massive amounts of ingoing and out-going communication in the Soviet Union. They are capable of monitoring all communication within the Soviet Union to massive degrees. This certain amount of executive freedoms has drawn much criticism from Western countries such as Roach-Busters and Pacitalia despite some of their own, domestic intelligence gathering techniques.

Organization

The KGB is a national Intelligence and Security Agency for the Soviet Union, and directly controls the Republic-level KGB organizations, however, as Russia is the core republic of the Soviet Union, the KGB, itself, also is Russia's republic-level KGB.

Executive staff

The Centre has simple executive staff positions tor un the day-to-day operations of the Soviet Union. This is mostly for efficiency purposes and has worked effectively ever sinse its installment in 1980. The members of the executive staff form a policy making body known as the Collegium. The following is a list of senior (executive) staff positions and who fills them.

• Chairman
  • Victor Prankratsky
• Deputy Chairman
  • Alexai Bocrovski
• Directorate Chairman
  • First Directorate Chairman
    • Freidrich Borsko
  • Second Directorate Chairman
    • Alexander Gripansky
  • Third Directorate Chairman
    • Hugo Vueza
  • Fourth Directorate Chairman
    • Jacob Markovitz
  • Fifth Directorate Chairman
    • Lorenzo Luicina
  • Sixth Directorate Chairman
    • Philipe Forzani
  • Seventh Directorate Chairman
    • Andrei Korenko
  • Eighth Directorate Chairman
    • Albert Burnstein
  • Ninth Directorate Chairman
    • Eliza Nushinka

Directorates

The KGB is composed of a group of directorates. Each directorate has a certain responsibility pertaining to the security of the Soviet Union. The following is a list of the directorates and their responsibilities:

• The First Chief Directorate (Foreign Operations) is responsible for foreign operations and intelligence-gathering activities.
• The Second Chief Directorate is responsible for internal political control of citizens and foreigners within the Soviet Union.
• The Third Chief Directorate (Armed Forces) controls military counterintelligence and political surveillance of the armed forces.
• The Fourth Chief Directorate also deals with internal security. Originally created to combat dissent, it took up some of the tasks previously handled by the Second Chief Directorate such as dissent, monitoring the artistic community, and the monitoring of publications.
• The Fifth Chief Directorate (Surveillance) handles surveillance, providing equipment to follow and monitor the activities of both foreigners and Soviet citizens.
• The Sixth Chief Directorate is responsible for communications. It deals with monitoring foreign communications and was also responsible for the cryptological systems used by KGB divisions, transmission to KGB stations overseas, and the development of communication equipment
• The Seventh Chief Directorate (Guards) is the force which provides uniformed guards and close protection (bodyguard) services for principal Union leaders and their families, and major government facilities in the Soviet Union, to includes nuclear warhead stockpiles. It also operates the VIP subway system in Moscow and the government's secure telephone system which linked high-level government and State officials.
• The Eighth Chief Directorate (State Communications) was upgraded from a department, it is responsible for the operation of the [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics|Soviet Union's]] government telephone and telegraph system,
• The Ninth Directorate is the force that provideds border security and combatted smuggling along the [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics|Soviet Union's]] extensive borders. It also deployed large naval and air contingents.

Notable operations

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KGB operatives outside of the Soviet embassy in Pacitalia.

Over the years since the KGB's formation, it has been responsible for many activities both in and outside of the Soviet Union. The following is a short list of some of the most notable operations.

• Robert Hanssen informed the KGB of U.S. counter-intelligence operations, from his FBI job.
• Aldrich Ames was a KGB mole in the CIA.
• Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were NKVD spies executed by the United States upon their conviction for conspiring to steal technical secrets from the US's atomic programs.
• Melita Norwood betrayed secrets to the KGB for forty (40) years.
• Kim Philby was a KGB informant within British Intelligence.
• Max Lugaveire was a KGB informant from Napoleonic Intelligence.

Reforms

After Troskin took power, certain reforms were inacted within the KGB. Most notable (see image at right) is the general appearance of KGB operatives. Their attire was changed from the forboding attire of the Stalin era. It is now seeming to be a less forboding, more Orwellian ("nonchalant oppression" according to The Economist) appearance. KGB operatives are usually seen wearing a simple suit, rectangular sunglasses, and a communication earpiece. However, some KGB operatives (depending on their specific task) wear anything ranging from a trench coat to a military uniform.

The other major reform inacted by Troskin's Politburo was the expansion of powers. The KGB was removed as a simple intelligence agency, to the most powerful security and executive enforcement agency in the country. Jurisdiction was expanded across previous limitations (including the right and duty to disrupt anti-Soviet protests and to enforce the prescribing of Dystorium). This has caused some scandles within the international community stating that the Soviet Union is becoming a dystopian, police-state.

The KGB has also began to continue its "active measure" programs in order to cause revolutions in Third World countries around the world. One of the most recent suspected "active measure revolutions" occurred in the nation of Upper Congo. Other suspected nations include Peru (Peruvian SSR), Ireland (Irish SSR; see The Holiday Revolution), and Upper Xen.

Lastly, with the expansion of the Systematization Programme, surveillance and public propaganda has been put partially under the control of the KGB. Surveillance equipment is seen throughout both systematized and non-systematized cities. Video monitors have expanded across most cities allowing for immediate updates and political placement of agitprop.

Scandles would plague the KGB even more if its iron grip were not so powerful. The KGB has the legal authority to suppress certain amounts of dissent, remove publications, and censor virtually anything. This single power has brought much ridicule from "democratic" countries around the world.