KGB

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Cell 33 in KGB Cells Museum, Tartu

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KGB special operative Igor Morozov on the armored vehicle

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1990 01 12 GorbačiovasŠiauliuose19Eigirdas

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Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights in Vilnius, Lithuania, 2021

Defense.gov photo essay 070423-D-7203T-017

KGB (Russian: Комитет государственной безопасности

, Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti, Committee for State Security) was the main security agency for the Soviet Union from March 13, 1954, until December 3, 1991. As a direct successor of preceding agencies such as the Cheka, NKVD, and MGB, the KGB was attached to the Council of Ministers. It was the chief government agency of "union-republican jurisdiction," conducting internal security, intelligence, and secret police functions. Additionally, it was tasked with guarding the state border of the USSR, conducting counterintelligence, protecting the leaders of the Soviet Union, and supervising the administration of prisons within the country.

History

The KGB's history began in the early years of the Soviet Union and went through several organizational changes and name changes before becoming the KGB in 1954. Its predecessors played a significant role in the Bolshevik consolidation of power, civil war, and the Great Purge of the 1930s. The KGB itself was instrumental during the Cold War, where it played a key role in espionage, counter-espionage, and the suppression of political dissent within the Soviet Union and abroad.

Structure

The KGB was organized into several directorates, including the First Chief Directorate (responsible for foreign intelligence), the Second Chief Directorate (responsible for counterintelligence and internal security), and the Eighth Chief Directorate (responsible for communications surveillance). Other units were responsible for guarding the high-ranking state officials and managing the archives.

Operations

The KGB conducted numerous espionage operations during the Cold War, using a wide array of methods, including electronic surveillance, covert operations, and the recruitment of spies. It was known for its efforts to infiltrate Western intelligence agencies and its involvement in the suppression of political dissent within the Soviet Union, including surveillance, harassment, and the detention of dissidents.

Legacy

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the KGB was disbanded and its functions were divided among different agencies in the newly independent states. In Russia, the Federal Security Service (FSB), the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), and the Federal Protective Service (FSO) are considered the main successors of the KGB.

See Also

• Cold War
• Espionage
• Intelligence agency
• Soviet Union