Master of Special Operations of the NKVD
From the declassified part of the personal file No.-000000 of State Security Commissioner 3 of the NKVD of the USSR Sudoplatov Pavel Anatolyevich
Pavel Sudoplatov was born on July 7 1907 in the city of Melitopol in the family of a miller. Ukrainian. In 1914, I went to the first class of a city school and studied there for five years. In the 1919 year, left without parents, he fled to Odessa, where he joined the company of homeless children who were begging and stealing food at the bazaar, but being a little clever, he had no conflict with the law. Raised on the tenets of the New and Old Testaments, learned in school, Paul experienced remorse from the life he had to lead. Sharply changing the vector of his aspirations, got a job as a laborer in a seaport.
At the beginning of 1920, after the White fleeing from Odessa Pavel, the 12-year-old starving orphan, white people fled the “son of the regiment” to the 14 Army of the Red Army, where he became an assistant telegraph operator. As part of the army participated in the battles in Ukraine and on the Polish front.
In May 1921 of the year during the routine inspection of personal belongings of the Red Army men, the head of the Special Division (military counterintelligence) of the division found Bukharin’s book “The Alphabet of Revolution” in the traveling bag of Sudoplatov. Marks made by Paul’s hand testified to his political maturity, and he was sent to training courses for political workers. After their completion in September 1923, the young Red Army soldier Sudoplatov at the Komsomol work in Melitopol: the head of the information department of the district committee of LKSMU, a member of the board and the commandant of the Working Youth Club, the secretary of the LKSMU cell named after V. Vorovsky.
In February, 1925 of the year, the district committee of LKSMU sent Sudoplatov to the Melitopol department of the GPU, where he was responsible for the work of the agents operating in the Greek, Bulgarian and German settlements for three years as a junior security officer.
So in the 17 years, Pavel Sudoplatov became a personnel security officer.
He has a brilliant ability for languages, a phenomenal memory, an absolute ear for music, and a year later he speaks fluent Greek, Bulgarian and German. This helped to establish more trusting relationships with secret agents and contributed to improving the quality of the information they provide.
It was during this period that Sudoplatov was formed as a professional recruiter, a “bounty hunter”. And the acquired skills of reincarnation - to pass for a Greek or a Bulgarian - will more than once serve him in good stead when traveling to Western Europe and Finland as an illegal intelligence officer in the 1930 – 1940 years.
August 1927 was marked for Sudoplatov by four fateful events: he was accepted as a member of the CPSU (b), promoted and transferred to the secret-political department of the GPU of the Ukrainian SSR in Kharkiv (the capital of Ukraine in those years), was accepted into the GPU faculty, met (!) with his future wife.
GOLDEN BEAUTY EMMA
Is it true that a man on the road of life displays a great love for a woman? 20-year-old Pavel found the answer for himself by meeting Emma Kaganova (Kogan). A blue-eyed Jewish woman with hair the color of wild honey instantly conquered his heart and thoughts.
Emma was as beautiful as intelligent. In her 22 she graduated from several classes of the Gomel gymnasium, was fond of literature, music, theater. Fluent in Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Yiddish and German. In the central office of the GPU of the Ukrainian SSR, Emma coordinated the activities of secret agents working among the Ukrainian creative intelligentsia — writers and theatrical figures.
In recognition of Sudoplatov, Emma, “this commissar in a skirt”, took the patronage over him from the first days of her acquaintance: not only attached to the theater, music and Russian classical literature, but also, having more operational experience, provided him with practical advice and recommendations.
In 1928, young people got married, but the marriage was officially registered only after 23. At that time, this phenomenon was widespread, becoming a kind of Soviet tradition.
In February, the spouses transferred 1932 to Moscow to the central office of the OGPU USSR.
Emma was assigned to the secret-political department, where she supervised the work of secret agents operating in the Writers' Union and other creative associations of the USSR. And Sudoplatov, preparing for work in Germany, at the headquarters of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), which was created and headed by Yevgen Konovalets, began to study the German language. Pavel studied them so thoroughly that even at home he spoke only German in Emma ...
DEATH IS HIDDEN IN THE CANDY BOX
During the First World War, Yevgen Konovalets, a colonel of the Austro-Hungarian army, fought against Russia on the Southwestern Front. In 1918, after three years in Russian captivity, he returned to Ukraine and, at the head of a gang of Ukrainians-nationalists, engaged in looting and Jewish pogroms. After the liquidation of the gang, taking two suitcases with stolen jewels, he fled to Germany.
In 1922, Konovalets met Hitler. From the very first meeting, a friendship arose between them, which was fueled by a common hatred of Russia. At the initiative of Hitler and with the help of officers of the German intelligence, Konovalets created the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN).
In 1928, special schools were opened in OUN for Germany, where German officers taught them sabotage and terrorist attacks. And in 1934, the Konovalets militants successfully passed the examination for the certificate of maturity of hired killers: the Polish minister Peratsky was killed in Warsaw, and the Soviet diplomat Maylov was killed in Lviv.
In 1935, Sudoplatov under the guise of a representative of the Ukrainian anti-Soviet underground was introduced into the leadership of the OUN in Berlin. He managed to get to study at a special Nazi party school at the National Security Council in Leipzig, where Konovalets' henchmen were trained. After winning the location of the OUN leader, Pavel accompanied him on inspection visits to Vienna and Paris. This, in particular, contributed to his impeccable knowledge of the German language ...
Konovalets so imbued with confidence in Sudoplatov that he appointed him as his plenipotentiary representative in Ukraine and dedicated to the strategic plans of the OUN.
So, relying on the support of the Germans, he was going to "liberate" a number of regions of Ukraine. For this, he formed two militant brigades in 2 thousand sabers. The “rejection action” from the USSR of the Ukrainian territories was financed by German military intelligence. Konovalets also planned to arrange a series of attacks on responsible party workers of the central apparatus of the CPSU (b) in Moscow.
The obtained information Sudoplatov personally reported to Stalin. The reward was not long in coming: for the successful fulfillment of the assignment and “the endurance and ingenuity shown at the same time” Sudoplatov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.
At the direction of Stalin, a plan was developed for preventive operational measures against the OUN, in particular the liquidation of Konovalets. To implement it was to Sudoplatov.
It was considered several ways to eliminate the leader of the OUN. We stopped at the proposal of Sudoplatov: to use the pathological passion of Konovalets for chocolate. For this purpose, an explosive device with a clockwork was built into the box of his favorite chocolates. To bring the device into combat, it was enough to give the box a horizontal position. Mina worked through 20 minutes, which, according to the developers of the operation, enabled Sudoplatov to leave unscathed and created an alibi for him.
21 August 1938 of the year Sudoplatov as a radio operator of the Shilka bulk carrier departed from Leningrad to Norway. From there, he called Konovaletsu and made an appointment in Rotterdam.
23 August in 11.50 Sudoplatov and Konovalets met in the restaurant "Atlant". After mutual greetings, Paul said that the meeting would be very short, as he was obliged to return to the ship, but they would meet again at 17.00 to discuss everything “thoroughly”. Pavel immediately put a box of chocolates on the table in front of Konovalets.
To change the appearance, Sudoplatov in a nearby store bought a hat and a white raincoat, and upon exiting he heard a weak bang of an explosion, reminiscent of the sound of a broken tire ...
BLESSING STALIN
- There are no important political figures in the Trotsky movement, except for Trotsky himself. Having dealt with him, we will eliminate the threat of the collapse of the Comintern ...
Stalin lit his pipe and looked at Beria and Sudoplatov on the other side of the table. Then, chasing words, as if giving an order, said:
- To you, comrade Sudoplatov, the party orders you to hold an action to eliminate Trotsky. You must personally conduct all the preparatory work and personally send a special group from Europe to Mexico. You will be given any help and support. You will report everything directly to Comrade Beria and to no one else. The Central Committee is required to submit all statements on the operation exclusively in handwritten form in a single copy!
So late at night on May 9 of 1939, a meeting in the Kremlin of the “small troika” - Stalin, Beria, Sudoplatov - ended and a special operation of the NKVD, codenamed “Duck” to eliminate Trotsky (Old Man), began.
Over time, the “Duck” will be recognized as a classic example of a diverse multi-pass operation and will not only be included in the methodological manuals of the KGB and the GRU - it will be studied in the training classes of the leading special services of the world.
CHERCHEZ LA FEMME!
On May 10, the day after the meeting, Sudoplatov was promoted - he was appointed deputy foreign intelligence chief of the NKVD.
Of the agents who settled in Mexico after the end of the Spanish Civil War, as well as the agents living in Western Europe and the USA, Sudoplatov and his deputy Eitingon formed two groups. The first is “Horse” headed by David Siqueiros, a famous Mexican artist. The second is the “Mother” under the command of Caridad Mercader, a Spanish revolutionary, a courageous and selfless woman. Her eldest son died in battles with the troops of Franco; medium - Ramon fought in a partisan unit in 1936; the younger, Louis, with other children of Republican fighters who had fled from the Franco regime, ended up in Moscow.
“Horse” and “Mother” acted autonomously and did not know about the existence of each other. And the tasks before the groups were different: “Horse” was preparing to storm Trotsky’s villa in Koyakan, a suburb of Mexico City, and “Mother” was supposed to introduce its people into the Old Man’s entourage, since there was not a single NKVD agent there. Because of this, the work of the first group stalled, because there was no villa plan, no data about the system and the number of guards, or information about Trotsky's daily routine.
Life has suggested that the path to the inner circle of Trotsky lies through the heart of a woman. And the handsome macho Ramona was brought in Paris to a certain Sylvia. As conceived by Sudoplatov and Eitingon, it was a doublet blow where the decisive role was to be played not by Sylvia herself, but by her own sister Ruth Agelov, a staff member of the secretariat and the connected Old Man with his supporters in the USA.
Ramon turned Sylvia's head, and it was for the wedding. In January 1940, they appeared together in Mexico City. Ruth Agelov petitioned Trotsky for her sister, and he hired her as a secretary. So, using the "dark" of the two sisters, Ramon became entree into the house of Trotsky. Since March 1940, he has visited 12 once and even talked to Trotsky, introducing himself as Jean Mornar, a journalist and subject of Belgium.
Bed-saver
The information obtained by Ramon was used by Siqueiros to storm the villa.
In the early morning of May 24, 1940, 20, people in police uniforms drove up to the gates of the fortress villa. Neutralized the guard at the entrance. Having penetrated inside, they turned off the alarm, tied up all the guards and, scattering around the Old Man’s bedroom, opened heavy fire from revolvers and light machine guns.
Trotsky, who lived in constant anticipation of the assassination, reacted instantly: grabbing his wife in an armful, he rushed from the bed to the floor and hid under the bed.
A massive bed of stained oak saved both of them: they didn’t have a scratch, and the bedroom was turned into a crinkle - the attackers fired (!) More 200 bullets.
None of the attempted police could not be detained. In addition to Siqueiros. But he spent only a couple of days in the dungeon: the president of Mexico was an ardent admirer of his talent and released on all four sides ...
MERCADER - VIRTUOSE LEDORUBA
The failure of the action to eliminate the Old Man by the militants of Siqueiros was painfully perceived in the Kremlin. The directors of the play “Duck” were forced to redo the script “on the march”, assigning non-native roles to the actors of the troupe. So, having changed the role of the seducer to the role of liquidator, Ramon Mercader came to the fore.
In early August, he showed his article to Trotsky (compiled by craftsmen from Lubyanka) about Trotskyist organizations in the USA and asked for his opinion. Trotsky took the article and offered to stop by for discussing 20 August.
Ramon appeared at the stipulated time, carrying a pistol and an ice ax. In case the security guard takes the pistol and ice ax, he hid the knife in the lining of his jacket. Managed: no one stopped or searched.
Ramon went to Trotsky's office. He sat down at the table and, holding an article in his hands, began to express his opinion. Mercader stood a little behind and to the side, pretending to listen to the teacher's remarks. Having decided that it was time to act, an ice ax snatched the ice-pick out from under the jacket and hit Trotsky on the head.
Either the blow was weak, or the head was hot, but Trotsky turned briskly, shouted wildly and sank his teeth into Ramon’s hand. Burst guards twisted him and beat him to a pulp.
Trotsky was transported to the hospital, Mercader - to prison.
Trotsky died a day later, Mercader was released from prison after 20 years.
By the way, the Old Man had almost deprived Mercader of his hand - a purulent inflammation had arisen at the site of the bite, which threatened to go into gangrene. Abscess managed to arrest the penicillin blockade. Penicillin, just appeared on the world medical market, agents of Eitingon for huge money acquired in the United States and fraudulently taken to prison.
For performing the “special assignment”, Eitingon and Caridad were awarded the Orders of Lenin, Sudoplatov - the Order of the Red Banner.
Mercader was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the award of the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal, but he gained them only on 31 on May 1960 of the year in Moscow ...
... Later, on the eve of and during the Great Patriotic War, the state security commissioner of the 3 rank Sudoplatov not only held a significant position in the hierarchy of state security of the Soviet Union, but also made a significant contribution to our victory, as a leader and taking direct part in the unique special operations of the NKVD "Monastery" and "Berezino", held in order to disinform the German military intelligence and the Wehrmacht ...
INSTEAD OF THE AFTERWORK
It is hard to believe, but, despite all the merits before the Motherland, Pavel Anatolyevich Sudoplatov, holder of the Order of Lenin, three orders of the Red Banner, Order of the Patriotic War 1 degree, Order of Suvorov 2 degree, two orders of the Red Star, ten medals, as well as the highest departmental award "Honored Worker of the NKVD", 21 August 1953, was arrested in his own office and accused of Beria plot, aimed at "the destruction of members of the Soviet government and the restoration of capitalism in the USSR."
Subsequently, Sudoplatov was sentenced to imprisonment for 15 years. Since September, 1958, served his sentence in the Vladimir prison. There he suffered three heart attacks, went blind in one eye, became an invalid of the second group, but was not spiritually broken. He was fully rehabilitated only in 1992 year. He died in 1996, not six months before his 90 anniversary.
In October 1998, by presidential decree, Lieutenant-General Sudoplatov was posthumously restored to the rights to state awards confiscated during the arrest.
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