KGB vs.
CIA
June 20th, 2022 By Reagan and Rebecca EDITION 001
Insert pic here pls rebecca
1954-1991 USSR 3
The KGB
Committee for State Security in the USSR
A brief overview…
- KGB--Committee for state security.
- Sword and shield of the Communist party
- KGB origins in the Cheka created in 1917
- Cheka changed to the OPGU in 1923 and then the NKVD in 1934
- Security groups such as MBG and NKGB were formed
- KGB officially created in 1954 after stalin's death.
- Gorbachev came to power KGB didn't like him and attempted to through a coup
- Coup not successful -- KGB stripped of its extensive military units and domestic
security functions
Operation Pandora
1960s Racial tensions
Racial tensions were high in the US
during the 1960s and the KGB had
strategies of escalating these
tensions with the hope of starting a
racial war.
MLK and Operation Pandora
- Campaign originally started with trying to manipulate Martin Luther King and
the movement for equality in the US
- KGB targeted the JDL (Jewish Defense League) and the Black Militant group
- MLK assasination -- change of plans, KGB made MLK into a martyr claiming he
was betrayed by the Government -- riots and violent protests
- Letters sent from KGB to the JDL & Black Militant group encouraging violence
- Operation Pandora
- Entire campaign considered unsuccessful -- no racial war
Lebanon hostage crisis
1985 The Alpha group
The Alpha group was created by the
KGB in 1947 as a counterterrorism
task force. It has the reputation of
being ruthless and effective. What
earned the Alpha group this reputation
was the Lebanon hostage crisis.
The Hezbollah
- September 1985 four Russian diplomats (two were part of the KGB) were
kidnapped by the Islamic Liberation Organization which is part of the group
called the Hezbollah
- Hezbollah (party of god) was a political party that emerged during Lebanon's
civil war.
- Party goal; drive israel out of Lebanon
- They claimed that the hostages would be killed unless the USSR and syrian
forces cease attacking iran forces in north Lebanon
USSR response
- USSR Initially tried to negotiate but
gave up when one of the Russian
diplomats were killed
- USSR sent the KGB’s Alpha group --
hostages were released a few weeks
later
How did they do it?
- How exactly the Alpha group was able to get back the hostages is unclear --
There are many varied retlings of the story however most share some key
points;
- The KGB kidnapped someone close to the Hezbollah group (a family
member or a member of the party)
- The Alpha group dismember this person and sent them back to the party
- Claimed they would continue to do this until all hostages were released --
hostages were promptly released
Operation Denver
1985 Active Measures
The KGB had a campaign called Active
measures, which was run by the KGB.
They would spread disinformation to
create tension, suspicion and ultimately
intensify anti-American feelings
throughout the world. One example of
active measures is Operation Denver.
Goal
- Operation Denver (or Infektion) was
launched in the 1980s.
- Goal; to create a better reputation for the
USSR abroad, strengthen anti-American
sentiment and discredit and blame the US
for the HIV virus.
The plan
- KGB planned to blame the US for the HIV virus.
- The KGB and Stasi used forged documents and inaccurate testimonies from
alleged experts to prove that the US was to blame.
- A scientific report was made by two east German biologists claiming they
could prove HIV was created by the US
- The documents and testimonies claimed that the Virus was created through
experimentation with biological warfare to target and kill enemies and
specific groups such as the gay community and African-Americans.
The Plan continued
- Stasi informed members of the Warsaw Pact their plan
- Bulgaria and Czechoslovakia were heavily involved
with the spreading of “scientific proof” -- posters,
news, pamphlets.
- Stasi provided Bulgaria with even more “proof” which
was later presented to the Summit meeting of the
Non-Aligned Movement in Harare, Zimbabwe in 1986.
Reactions and results
- Many (especially enemy countries of the US) believed these new facts
wholeheartedly.
- African journalists were pleased to report these new “findings” and many
believed that the original claims on were the HIV virus came from (animals in
africa) was a way to target and blame Africa/Africans.
- Many conspiracy theories began to circulate that the USSR would egg on.
- A cycle of disinformation and misinformation arose, many questioned the US,
anti-American feelings intensified around the world -- Operation successful
1947 - Present MURICA 16
The CIA
Central Intelligence Agency of the USA
A Brief Overview…
Established in 1947 under Truman after National Security Act passed
The mission of the CIA:
- To provide foreign intelligence on national security topics
- To conduct counterintelligence as directed by the president
Headed by a director and a deputy director
4 directorates: Intelligence, operations, science, administration
Operation PBSuccess
June 1954 CIA 18
The CIA’s deterrence of the
Guatemalan revolution, which kept
military dictators in power for
years.
Guatemalan Revolution
- 1931: Jorge Ubico, supported by landowners, won presidency
- Was a fan of the fascists! Landowners could execute workers!
- United Fruit Company: largest landowner & employer in
Guatemala
- Contract: 500k acres land, tax exemption, salary cap of 50¢
/day
- Earned twice the income of Guatemalan gov’t (65 mil US/yr)
- Middle class revolution= Juan Jose Arevalo installed as president
Guatemalan Rev. Cont'd
- Arevalo’s changes: Labour code, hospitals, schools, minimum wage
- US gov’t thought Arevalo was under soviet influence, Arbenz elected
- Freed communist leaders from prison, supported Caribbean legion
- The UFC got 400k acres of land taken away from Arbenz’ land reforms
- Spent $500k lobbying in the US to overthrow Guatemalan gov’t
- Enter the CIA
Guatemalan Coup D’état
- CIA used Guatemalan exile Castillo Armas
- 480 troops invaded Guatemala with American weapons
- Attacked a British cargo ship on charter to a US company
(oops)
- Arbenz took to the UN Security Council (vetoed)
- “Voice of Liberation” radio station spread UFC propaganda
- Officials turned on Arbenz -> resignation
- Long line of military dictatorships in Guatemala installed
Operation Acoustic Kitty
1960s CIA 22
What is the best way to spy on your
enemy? Using cats of course!
Background
- Launched by the CIA Directorate of Science and Technology
- Planned to use cats to spy on the Kremlin and Soviet embassies
- Took 5 years to complete tests
- Procedure: surgeons implanted mics in the cat’s ear, radio
transmitter at the base of its skull, and wires into its fur
- Created a “franken-kitty”
- Would allow the cat to record sound
The Operation
- The first mission: to eavesdrop on men outside the Soviet
embassy in DC
- The cat got hit by a taxi as soon as it was released!
- Project abandoned because training cats is hard.
- The cats got distracted very easily by food, making it
hard to eavesdrop on conversations
- Former CIA officer claimed that the project cost $20 million
Project MK-Ultra
1950s - Early 1960s CIA 25
A covert CIA project designed
to test the mind-control
capabilities of psychedelic
drugs, electroshock therapy,
and paralytics.
Background
- Cold War: the US gov’t thought that the Soviets were using mind control
on US POWs in North Korea
- Was a “continuation” of work done by Nazis in
concentration camps
- Headed by Sidney Gottlieb and started by CIA director Allen Dulles on
April 13, 1953
- Aimed to develop mind controlling techniques and “truth serums” for
use against the Soviet Bloc
LSD Experiments
- Thought to be the “perfect truth” drug
- Most subjects were unaware they were being
tested on
- Administered to people who “could not fight back”
- Agents would extend the ‘trip’ if patients did
not comply
- Given to CIA agents without warning
Fun Experiments!
There were over 150 sub projects throughout the course of MK-Ultra. Here
are a few fun ones!
- “Perfect Concussion” - sub aural frequency blasts used to erase
memory
- “Midnight Climax“ - brothels were set up and LSD was administered to
clientele (they would be too embarrassed to talk)
- Put patients into drug induced comas for weeks at a time, played them
repetitive phrases. They forgot how to talk!
‘Poisoners in Chief’
Sidney Gottlieb Donald Ewen Cameron
Was in the department of agriculture at Led the project in Canada.
first!
Used electroshock therapy at 30-40x the
Orchestrated the whole project and lead regular strength
the US branch
Former chair of the American, Canadian,
Raised goats when he got old (yogurt fan) and World Psychiatric Associations
Results
Unabomber: mailed bombs for 20 years, killed 3 people
- Caused the longest and most expensive FBI investigation ever
- Was a part of clinical trials that are thought to be a part of MK-Ultra
Frank Olson: CIA agent given LSD without warning
- ‘Defenestrated’ himself after a depressive episode caused by the drug
All documents were destroyed in 1973 during an investigation into the CIA
Thank You!
