The Rise And Fall Of The KGB In America

In “Spies: the Rise and fall of the KGB in America”, John Earl Haynes, Harvey Klehr, and Alexander Vassiliev base their information off of a collection of documents that belonged to the KGB. The archives provide the most complete report of Soviet espionage in America ever written. Along with a general look into espionage strategies and the motives of Americans who spied for Stalin, this book settles specific controversies. “Spies: the Rise and Fall of the KGB in America” reveals numerous American spies who were never even under suspicion and also identifies the last unaccounted for nuclear spies who were American. This source focused greatly on Soviet infiltration of the U.S. government, and Haynes, Harvey, and Vassiliev convey why and how penetration contributed to the success and failure of the KGB throughout the Cold War.

It is significant to understand what the KGB was and what it did, since this book is centered around the actions of this organization. The KGB was the main security agency for the Soviet Union from 1954 until its collapse in 1991. The KGB was also considered to have been a military service and was governed by army laws and regulations. Its main focuses included foreign intelligence, counterintelligence, operative-investigatory activities, guarding the State Boarder of the USSR and the leadership of the Soviet Government, organization and ensuring of government communications as well as fighting off nationalism and anti-Soviet activities. The KGB failed to rebuild most of its U.S. illegal resident networks, and the last major illegal resident was betrayed by his own assistant in 1957. Recruitment then put emphasis on mercenary agents. This approach was successful in espionage that was specifically scientific...

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...o recruited sources with access to American counterintelligence investigations in order to monitor the danger its agents faced and to warn them when they were in trouble. While a handful of spies in the American government were mercenaries, paid foreigners, most of them were actually Communists who took little profit for their activities but willingly supplied information out of devotion to the Soviet Union (pg 291).

John Earl Haynes, Harvey Klehr, and Alexander Vassiliev deciphered KGB documents in order to present ideas about Soviet espionage in the U.S. during the time of the Cold War. This book covered the basic tactics and drive behind Americans who spied for the Soviet Union. This source concentrated on uncovering the unexpected U.S. spies on the Soviet’s side and the rise and fall of the KGB due to the penetration of America’s government during the Cold War.