Military counterintelligence within the Soviet Armed Forces was controlled by the nonmilitary Soviet
secret police
image:Putin-Stasi-Ausweis.png, 300px, Vladimir Putin's secret police identity card, issued by the East German Stasi while he was working as a Soviet KGB liaison officer from 1985 to 1989. Both organizations used similar forms of repression.
Secre ...
throughout the history of the
USSR
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
(1922 to 1991).
Military counterintelligence departments of the
Soviet Armed Forces
The Armed Forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, also known as the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union, the Red Army (1918–1946) and the Soviet Army (1946–1991), were the armed forces of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republi ...
existed in all larger military formations, each called a ''Special Department'' () or third department/section. The staff of the Special Department would usually establish a secret network of
informant
An informant (also called an informer or, as a slang term, a "snitch", "rat", "canary", "stool pigeon", "stoolie", "tout" or "grass", among other terms) is a person who provides privileged information, or (usually damaging) information inten ...
s.
''TGU'' (ТГУ КГБ СССР, 3 ГУ КГБ СССР ('third')) functionaries were responsible for protection of the military units and of important servicemen (e.g. commanding officers) against activities of foreign
offices/
diplomat
A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...
s.
Timeline
Source:
*Initially there was no common counterintelligence directorate. Various
armies and
fronts had their "Special Departments".
*
Vecheka, ВЧК, founded on 20 December 1917
*Military Department of Vecheka, Военный отдел ВЧК, established on 27 July 1918
*Special Department of Vecheka, Особый отдел ВЧК, established on 19 December 1918
*Special Department of Secret Operative Directorate of
GPU NKVD RSFSR, Особый отдел СОУ (Секретно-оперативное управление) ГПУ, July 1922
*Special Department of
OGPU
The Joint State Political Directorate ( rus, Объединённое государственное политическое управление, p=ɐbjɪdʲɪˈnʲɵn(ː)əjə ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əjə pəlʲɪˈtʲitɕɪskəjə ʊprɐˈv ...
, Особый отдел ОГПУ, September 1930
*4th Division of the OGPU Special Department, 4 отделение Особого отдела ОГПУ
*Special Department of the
GUGB NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...
USSR
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
, Особый отдел ГУГБ НКВД СССР (July 1934 –)
*5th (Special) Dept. of
GUGB, 5-й (особый) отдел ГУГБ December 1936 –
*2nd Directorate of NKVD (Special Departments), 2-е Управление (особых отделов) НКВД СССР June 1938 –
*4th (Special) Dept. of
GUGB, 4-й (особый) отдел ГУГБ September 1938 – February 1941
*3rd Directorate of
People's Commissariat of Defense,(UKR НКО) Третье Управление НКО February 1941 – July 1941
*3rd Directorate of
People's Commissariat of the Navy (UKR NKВМФ), Третье Управление НКВМФ February 1941 – January 1942
*3rd Dept. of NKVD, (OKR NKVD) Третий отдел НКВД February 1941 – July 1941
*
Directorate of Special Departments of NKVD, (УОО НКВД) Управление особых отделов НКВД СССР July 1941 – April 1943
*
SMERSH (ГУРК НКО) 1943–1946
*Third Chief Directorate of
MGB of the USSR, Третье Главное Управление МГБ СССР, May 1946 – 1953
*Third Directorate of
Ministry of Internal Affairs, Третье управление МВД СССР, March 1953 – 1954
*Third Chief Directorate of
KGB
The Committee for State Security (, ), abbreviated as KGB (, ; ) was the main security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 to 1991. It was the direct successor of preceding Soviet secret police agencies including the Cheka, Joint State Polit ...
by the
Council of Ministers of the USSR
The Council of Ministers of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics ( rus, Совет министров СССР, r=Sovet Ministrov SSSR, p=sɐˈvʲet mʲɪˈnʲistrəf ˌɛsˌɛsˌɛsˈɛr), sometimes abbreviated as Sovmin or referred to as the ...
, Третье главное управление КГБ при СМ СССР, March 1954 – 1960
*Third Directorate of KGB of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, Третье управление КГБ при СМ СССР, 1960–1978
*Third Directorate of KGB of the USSR, Третье управление КГБ СССР, 1978–1982
*Third Chief Directorate of KGB of the USSR, Третье главное управление КГБ СССР, 1982–1991
Notes
{{Authority control
Military of the Soviet Union
KGB
*
Military intelligence agencies
Counterintelligence agencies