Vadim Bakatin
Encyclopedia
Vadim Viktorovich Bakatin (born 6 November 1937) was a Soviet politician who served as the last chairman of the KGB
in 1991. He is the last surviving former chairman of this organization. He was appointed to dismantle the KGB, but he was unable to control this organization and to fulfill the task.
, Kemerovo Oblast
and educated at Novosibirsk Construction Engineering Institute and Academy of Social Sciences.
In 1991 Bakatin, as a Chief of KGB revealed to the U.S. Ambassador Robert Schwarz Strauss
the methods that had been used to install covert listening device
s in the building that had been intended to replace Spaso House
as the American embassy in Moscow. Strauss reported that this revelation was made out of a sense of cooperation and goodwill, with "no strings attached". Bakatin's action was met with harsh criticism, including allegations of treason, and his position was eliminated following the collapse of the Soviet Union when President Boris Yeltsin merged the KGB with other government agencies.
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
in 1991. He is the last surviving former chairman of this organization. He was appointed to dismantle the KGB, but he was unable to control this organization and to fulfill the task.
Life
He was born in KiselyovskKiselyovsk
Kiselyovsk is a town in Kemerovo Oblast, Russia. Population: -External links:*...
, Kemerovo Oblast
Kemerovo Oblast
Kemerovo Oblast , also known as Kuzbass after the Kuznetsk Basin, is a federal subject of Russia , located in southwestern Siberia, where the West Siberian Plain meets the South Siberian mountains...
and educated at Novosibirsk Construction Engineering Institute and Academy of Social Sciences.
Career
- 1960-71 - supervisor, chief engineer, director of construction works.
- 1964-91 - Member of the CPSU.
- 1971-73 - chief engineer of housing construction combine.
- 1973-75 - Second Secretary of Kemerovo City Committee.
- 1977-83 - Secretary of Kemerovo District Committee.
- 1985 - Inspector of CPSU Central Committee.
- 1985-87 - First Secretary of Kirov District Committee.
- 1986-90 - Member of CPSU Central Committee.
- 1987-88 - First Secretary of Kemerovo District Committee.
- 1988-90 - USSR Minister of Internal Affairs.
- 1990(Jan-Nov) - Member of the Presidential Council.
- 1991(Aug-Dec) - Head of KGB.
- 1991-92 - Head of the Interrepublican Security Service.
- 1992 - Vice-President and Director of Department of Political and International Relations of the international "Reforma" Fund.
In 1991 Bakatin, as a Chief of KGB revealed to the U.S. Ambassador Robert Schwarz Strauss
Robert Schwarz Strauss
Robert Schwarz Strauss is a figure in American politics and diplomacy. A Texas political figure, Strauss’s political service dates back to future president Lyndon Johnson’s first congressional campaign in 1937. By the 1950s, he was associated in Texas politics with the conservative faction of...
the methods that had been used to install covert listening device
Covert listening device
A covert listening device, more commonly known as a bug or a wire, is usually a combination of a miniature radio transmitter with a microphone. The use of bugs, called bugging, is a common technique in surveillance, espionage and in police investigations.A bug does not have to be a device...
s in the building that had been intended to replace Spaso House
Spaso House
Spaso House is a listed Neoclassical Revival building at No. 10 Spasopeskovskaya Square in Moscow. It was originally built in 1913 as the mansion of the textile industrialist Nikolay Vtorov. Since 1933 it has been the residence of the U.S...
as the American embassy in Moscow. Strauss reported that this revelation was made out of a sense of cooperation and goodwill, with "no strings attached". Bakatin's action was met with harsh criticism, including allegations of treason, and his position was eliminated following the collapse of the Soviet Union when President Boris Yeltsin merged the KGB with other government agencies.