AN INSIGHT INTO WW2
RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE OPERATIONS...
The video link you see above is Part 1. of a Russian TV Series. It deals with the time leading up to the eventual collapse of the Thord Reich and the Intelligence Operations of the Soviets.
There are 12 episodes in all, I am sharing them with you because I believe there is, for the genuine, enquiring mind, a feast of relevant information about just how efficient the Soviets were in those years.
There are 12 episodes in all, I am sharing them with you because I believe there is, for the genuine, enquiring mind, a feast of relevant information about just how efficient the Soviets were in those years.
I should warn you that it is in Russian but there are subtitles. It was recommended to me by a recent new acquaintance who also happens to be Russian, a playwright in fact, and whose company I enjoyed enormously. In his view, these episodes provide a historically accurate account of the end times of WW2. Most importantly, the descriptions of the methods used by the Russians were equally as accurate.
Whilst the videos have been around for a few years now, not too many people will have viewed them and so my hope is that it will shed new light on the machinations of Intelligence operations for the many thousands of followers of the Somerton Man case.
Whilst the videos have been around for a few years now, not too many people will have viewed them and so my hope is that it will shed new light on the machinations of Intelligence operations for the many thousands of followers of the Somerton Man case.
Some will recall the time when Pavel Fedosimov served as an agent in German-occupied territory.
Pete Bowes may be interested in some of the examples of tradecraft that the clips portrayed, an ashtray, envelopes, clandestine messages, and more are shown in great detail in various clips, I hope you enjoy them!
Pete Bowes may be interested in some of the examples of tradecraft that the clips portrayed, an ashtray, envelopes, clandestine messages, and more are shown in great detail in various clips, I hope you enjoy them!
You may find the pace slow at first...
Comments are welcome!
Comments are welcome!
Rare footage indeed, Gordon, thanks for the heads up.
ReplyDeleteIn episode 7, you can learn how fingerprints were used to identify a suspect but not only that, at the 48th minute approximately, you will see an example of tradecraft related to the use of cigarettes in bringing about the expedient demise of a spy. Is this what happened in the case of the Somerton Man? Was the part smoked cigarette laced with poison?
ReplyDeleteGot that? But that is not half as interesting as the 52nd minute where micro written code numbers and letters were hidden in a tooth capsule and passed over to an enemy agent. Remember that you are watching a Russian made film and they are showing Russian tradecraft practices. Keep watching!
ReplyDeleteGordon, I can’t see such expertise paired with the in-expertise of someone involved just dumpiing incriminating evidence. ie, the Rubaiyat and all that came with it.
ReplyDeletePete, the instance of the fingerprints is all about a mistake that the lead made, a very basic one that has repercussions in later episodes.
ReplyDeleteWhether the ROK book was placed or dumped is something we will probably never know for certain.
1. If it was placed then it was a known tradecraft method to confirm a meeting. An example of that would be Klaus Fuchs apparently dumping a copy of a 'Men Only' magazine over a specific garden fence between the third and fourth trees in Stanmore Road, Kew ( I think) London. It was a pre arranged signal for an alternative meeting point should a planned rendezvous not occur. On the tenth page of the book, the new details were to be indicated. We don't have the ROK at the moment to prove or disprove if this was the case. Here's the link to the Post first published in 2018:
https://tamamshud.blogspot.com/2018/10/somerton-man-was-book-signal-in-itself.html
2. If it was dumped, and given that it was the Somerton Man that dumped the book, it may be that our man was being pursued in which case it would would appear to follow standard procedure to ditch any evidence which could then be collected later. The torn piece was the key and later examination shows that.
The full set of videos shown here are based an actual events. More specifically on Operation Sunrise. the code name given to a series of discussions held between Alan Dulles and Himmler and realting to the surrender of German Forces in Northern Italy.
ReplyDeleteOther operations are alluded to, including Matchbox and Paperclip which happens to be the focus of friend Pete Bowes' latest post. Episode 9 makes reference to the Runge group, German physicists who were working on the A Bomb and who, according to the script were close to production of the bomb on 1944. Hitler in a rage, effectively stopped them working and thus threw away his lat straw.
The series is a slow burn in many ways but it certainly illustrates the use of numerous tradecraft techniques if you know what you're looking for. From disguises, to losing a tail, car swaps to plain sight signalling and plain old deception plus much more.
Personally I have enjoyed watching and learning about the Russian perspective of those years.
Thanks for the tip Sasha!