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, OGPU, and NKVD. Attached to the Council of Ministers, it was the chief government agency of "union-republican jurisdiction", carrying out internal security, foreign intelligence, counter-intelligence and secret police functions. Similar agencies operated in each of the republics of the Soviet Union aside from the Russian SFSR, where the KGB was headquartered, with many ass
AI overview
The KGB was the Soviet Union's main security and intelligence agency from 1954 to 1991, responsible for internal security, foreign intelligence, and secret police operations. It matters historically because it was a central instrument of Soviet state control and successor to earlier Soviet secret police forces, wielding significant power over the country's population and activities abroad.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Key facts
- Government agency.agency_name
- KGB
- Government agency.seal
- Emblema KGB.svg
- Government agency.seal_width
- 150
- Government agency.preceding1
- Cheka (1917–1922)
- Government agency.preceding2
- GPU (1922–1923)
- Government agency.preceding3
- OGPU (1923–1934)
- Government agency.preceding5
- NKGB (February–July 1941/1943–1946)
- Government agency.superseding1
- MSB (1991)
- Government agency.superseding2
- TsSR (1991)
- Government agency.superseding3
- AFB (1991)
- Government agency.superseding4
- KOGG (1991)
- Government agency.headquarters
- Lubyanka Building, 2 Bolshaya Lubyanka Street, Moscow, Soviet Union
Article
22 sectionsContents
- History
- In the US
- Between the World Wars
- During the Cold War
- In the Soviet Bloc
- Notable operations
- Bangladesh
- Afghanistan
- August 1991 and dissolution
- Organisation
- Republican affiliations
- Leadership
- Directorates
- Other units
- Mode of operation
- List of chairmen
- Commemorative and award badges
- See also
- References
- Sources
- Further reading
- External links
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, OGPU, and NKVD. Attached to the Council of Ministers, it was the chief government agency of "union-republican jurisdiction", carrying out internal security, foreign intelligence, counter-intelligence and secret police functions. Similar agencies operated in each of the republics of the Soviet Union aside from the Russian SFSR, where the KGB was headquartered, with many associated ministries, state committees and state commissions.
The agency was a military service governed by army laws and regulations, in the same fashion as the Soviet Army or the MVD Internal Troops. While most of the KGB archives remain classified, two online documentary sources are available. Its main functions were foreign intelligence, counter-intelligence, operative-investigative activities, guarding the state border of the USSR, guarding the Soviet leadership, preserving the security of government communications as well as combating dissent and separatism within Soviet society.
Gallery (19)
Connections
Categories
1954 establishments in the Soviet Union1991 disestablishments in the Soviet UnionCold War history of the Soviet UnionCold War in popular cultureEastern Bloc intelligence agenciesForeign relations of the Soviet UnionGovernment agencies disestablished in 1991Government agencies established in 1954KGBLaw enforcement agencies of the Soviet UnionLaw enforcement in communist states