Blowing Up Russia
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''Blowing Up Russia: Terror from Within'' () is a book written by
Alexander Litvinenko Alexander Valterovich Litvinenko (30 August 1962 ( at WebCite) – 23 November 2006) was a British-naturalised Russian defector and former officer of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) who specialised in tackling organized crime, ...
and Yuri Felshtinsky. The authors describe the
Russian apartment bombings In September 1999, a series of explosions hit four apartment blocks in the Russian cities of Buynaksk, Moscow, and Volgodonsk, killing more than 300, injuring more than 1,000, and spreading a wave of fear across the country. The bombings, toget ...
as a
false flag A false flag operation is an act committed with the intent of disguising the actual source of responsibility and pinning blame on another party. The term "false flag" originated in the 16th century as an expression meaning an intentional misrep ...
operation that was guided by the
Russian Federal Security Service The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation СБ, ФСБ России (FSB) is the principal security agency of Russia and the main successor agency to the Soviet Union's KGB; its immediate predecessor was the Federal Counterint ...
to justify the
Second Chechen War Names The Second Chechen War is also known as the Second Chechen Campaign () or the Second Russian Invasion of Chechnya from the Chechens, Chechen insurgents' point of view.Федеральный закон № 5-ФЗ от 12 января 19 ...
and bring
Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
to power. The story was initially printed by Yuri Shchekochikhin in a special issue of ''
Novaya Gazeta ''Novaya Gazeta'' (, ) is an independent Russian newspaper. It is known for its critical and investigative coverage of Russian political and social affairs, the Chechen wars, corruption among the ruling elite, and increasing authoritarianism i ...
'' in August 2001 and published as a book in 2002. In Russia, the book was prohibited because it divulged state secrets, and it was included in the
Federal List of Extremist Materials Federal List of Extremist Materials (, ''Federal'nyy spisok ekstremistskikh matyerialov'') is a list of works that are banned in the Russian Federation, primarily based on the Russian Internet Restriction Bill. It is compiled by the Ministry of ...
. However, it was published in more than twenty other countries and translated into twenty languages.


Background

In July 1998, Putin was appointed as the
director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...
of the
Federal Security Service The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation СБ, ФСБ России (FSB) is the principal security agency of Russia and the main successor agency to the Soviet Union's KGB; its immediate predecessor was the Federal Counterin ...
(FSB). In August 1999, he became the
prime minister of Russia The prime minister of the Russian Federation, also domestically stylized as the chairman of the government of the Russian Federation and widely recognized as the prime minister, is the head of government of Russia and the second highest ranking ...
. In September 1999, a series of explosions hit four apartment blocks in the
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
n cities of
Buynaksk Buynaksk (; ; ; ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in the Republic of Dagestan, Russia, located at the foothills of the Greater Caucasus on the Shura-Ozen River, southwest of the republic's capital city, capital Makhachkala. P ...
,
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
and
Volgodonsk Volgodonsk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, located in the east of the oblast on the west bank of the Tsimlyansk Reservoir. Population: 28,000 (1970). History Volgodonsk was founded in 1950 as ...
, killing more than 300, and injuring more than 1,000. According to an interview, Yuri Felshtinsky started collecting materials about the bombings in 1999, not thinking that the FSB had anything to do with the terrorism acts. He was deeply disturbed after discovering that the bombings were in fact committed by the FSB. He consulted with
Viktor Suvorov Vladimir Bogdanovich Rezun (; ; born 20 April 1947), known by his pseudonym of Viktor Suvorov (), is a former Soviet GRU officer who is the author of non-fiction books about World War II, the GRU and the Soviet Army, as well as fictional books ...
, a writer and former
GRU Gru is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the ''Despicable Me'' film series. Gru or GRU may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * Gru (rapper), Serbian rapper * Gru, an antagonist in '' The Kine Saga'' Organizations Georgia (c ...
officer, who defected to the UK in 1978. When asked: "Would you personally blow out the building with innocent people after receiving the order?", Mr Suvorov replied: "Of course I would. That is our job. We always follow the order." Felshtinsky contacted Alexander Litvinenko who became a coauthor of the book. Felshtinsky had known Litvinenko since 1998. Shortly after the bombings, the ex- Secretary of the Security Council of Russia Lieutenant General
Alexander Lebed Lieutenant General Alexander Ivanovich Lebed (; 20 April 1950 – 28 April 2002) was a Soviet and Russian military officer and politician who held senior positions in the Airborne Forces before running for president in the 1996 Russian preside ...
claimed that he is "almost certain" that the bombings were organized by the Russian government. In 2002, Lebed died in a helicopter crash. According to Lebed's associates, the crash was caused by an explosive device.


Publication and government response

The first edition of the book was published in 2002. On December 29, 2003,
Russian Interior Ministry The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation (MVD; , ''Ministerstvo vnutrennikh del'') is the interior ministry of Russia. The MVD is responsible for law enforcement in Russia through its agencies the Police of Russia, Migrati ...
and FSB units seized 4,376 copies of the book intended for Alexander Podrabinek's Prima news agency. FSB lieutenant Alexander Soima said that the book was confiscated as a material evidence in the criminal case No 218 initiated in June 2003 for disclosing state secrets. Podrabinek was summoned by the FSB on January 28, 2004. He refused to answer the questions. In response to FSB's banning their books, the authors granted the right to print and distribute the books in Russia to "anybody who wishes to do so" free of charge.Copyright removed from books by Litvinenko and Felshtinskiy
, Prima News, 2004-02-01
Lawyer
Mikhail Trepashkin Mikhail Ivanovich Trepashkin (; born 7 April 1957) is a Russian attorney and former Federal Security Service (FSB) colonel who was invited by MP Sergei Kovalev to assist in an independent inquiry of the Russian apartment bombings in September ...
said that he warned Litvinenko in 2003 about a menace from FSB confirmed by two sources. Trepashkin quoted the words of FSB officer Victor Shebalin saying that everyone who was involved in publication of the book ''Blowing up Russia'' would be destroyed and that FSB had deployed three agents to
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
to assassinate Yuri Felshtinsky. In 2006, one of the book's authors (Litvinenko) was poisoned, allegedly by FSB agent Andrey Lugovoi. The
European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The court hears applications alleging that a co ...
ruled that Russia was responsible for the assassination. According to the results of an inquiry by the British Government, "The FSB operation to kill Mr. Litvinenko was probably approved by... President Putin." After Litvinenko was poisoned, confiscated copies of the book were kept by the FSB and destroyed in 2007 "due to death of the accused" Litvinenko. In 2015 the book was included in the
Federal List of Extremist Materials Federal List of Extremist Materials (, ''Federal'nyy spisok ekstremistskikh matyerialov'') is a list of works that are banned in the Russian Federation, primarily based on the Russian Internet Restriction Bill. It is compiled by the Ministry of ...
, preventing any form of publication in Russia.


Reviews

Alexander Goldfarb said the book "would haunt Putin the way the image of the killed
Tsarevich Tsarevich (, ) was a title given to the sons of tsars. The female equivalent was ''tsarevna''. Under the 1797 Pauline Laws, Pauline house laws, the title was discontinued and replaced with ''tsesarevich'' for the heir apparent alone. His younger ...
haunted
Boris Godunov Boris Feodorovich Godunov (; ; ) was the ''de facto'' regent of Russia from 1585 to 1598 and then tsar from 1598 to 1605 following the death of Feodor I, the last of the Rurik dynasty. After the end of Feodor's reign, Russia descended into t ...
." According to
Oleg Gordievsky Oleg Antonovich Gordievsky (; 10 October 1938 – 4 March 2025) was a colonel of the KGB who became KGB resident-designate (''rezident'') and bureau chief in London. Gordievsky was a double agent, providing information to the British Secret ...
, "For clues as to who wanted Alexander Litvinenko dead, you need look no farther than his book ''Blowing Up Russia''" ''
Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...
'' described the book as "A vivid condemnation of the Putin regime". In a review for ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', Anne Penketh said that the book is "a densely written text" and "(f)or those seeking a reason for the killing of Litvinenko, this book contains the possible motive, although it does not mention the role of Berezovsky — sworn enemy of Putin — in bringing it out in the first place." Historian Robert Service for ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'': "In 2002 their Yuri Felshtinsky">itvinenko and Yuri Felshtinskyjointly written book failed to appeal to established publishers in the west. It has taken Litvinenko's murder for the book to appear in this updated edition ... as vivid a condemnation of the Putin regime as has yet been written.". Viv Groskop for ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...
'' wrote, that the book "rehashes the well-known argument that the 1999 terrorist bombing campaign that precipitated Russia's second war with Chechnya and propelled Putin to the presidency was in fact organised by Russia's own security services. David Satter, a former Moscow correspondent for the Financial Times, has written authoritatively on the subject." According to her, the book focuses "in excruciating, rambling detail" on the failed attempt by FSB agents to plant a bomb in a residential building in the city of
Ryazan Ryazan (, ; also Riazan) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and administrative center of Ryazan Oblast, Russia. The city is located on the banks of the Oka River in Central Russia, southeast of Moscow. As of the 2010 C ...
, but it fails to describe convincingly the overall involvement of Russian state security services in organizing the bombings.


Film

In 2001, the documentary film '' Assassination of Russia'' was made on the basis of the book by French producers Jean-Charles Deniau and Charles Gazelle. Yuri Felshtinsky and Alexander Litvinenko worked as consultants for the film. The film was shown on TV in
Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...
,
Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...
, and
Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...
, but not in Russia.


Footnotes


Bibliography

* * Full text available a
Yuri Felshtinsky's web site


External links


Blowing Up Russia: The Secret Plot to Bring Back KGB Terror
Live interview by historian Yuri Felshtinsky about the book, Aleksander Litvinenko and situation in Russia at
C-SPAN Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American Cable television in the United States, cable and Satellite television in the United States, satellite television network, created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a Non ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blowing Up Russia: Terror From Within Alexander Litvinenko Politics of Russia Books about terrorism Books about post-Soviet Russia Books about the Federal Security Service 2007 non-fiction books Non-fiction books about organized crime 1999 Russian apartment bombings False flag operations Book censorship in Russia Deep politics Censored books Works banned in Russia