George Kisevalter
Encyclopedia
George Kisevalter was a CIA operations officer who handled both Major Pyotr Popov
, the first Soviet GRU
officer run by the CIA, and Colonel Oleg Penkovsky
.
. The Bolshevik Revolution forced the Kisevalters to remain in the United States, where they eventually took US citizenship.
The Kisevalters settled in New York City
, where the young George attended Stuyvesant High School
. In 1926, he entered Dartmouth College
to study engineering. Among his classmates was Nelson Rockefeller
.
Program. His first experience with intelligence came in 1944 when, as a fluent Russian speaker, he was assigned to military intelligence in order to work on Soviet intelligence projects. Because of his growing expertise in Soviet matters, as well as his German language skill, Kisevalter was one of the officers who interviewed Major General Reinhard Gehlen
, after the latter's surrender to the US military. Gehlen had been the German chief of intelligence for the eastern front, and was well versed in Soviet military and political affairs.
. Also in 1953, a major of the GRU
named Pyotr Semyonovich Popov
contacted American intelligence in Vienna and offered to spy for the United States. Kisevalter was selected as Popov's handler. Based in Vienna
, Austria
, Kisevalter spent the next five years handling Popov, who provided the United States with detailed information on Soviet military plans and capabilities. During the period when he spied for the United States, Popov was considered to be "the CIA's most important agent." Kisevalter's involvement came to an end with Popov's capture and subsequent execution in 1959.
In 1961, Kisevalter was assigned to handle another GRU walk-in, Colonel Oleg Penkovsky
. For almost two years, Kisevalter and the British Secret Intelligence Service
(MI-6) jointly handled Penkovsky, who provided them with vital information on Soviet missile capabilities. Penkovsky's information was critical to the resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis
. However, in 1962, Penkovsky was arrested by the KGB
and subsequently executed.
and Yuri Nosenko
. Golitsyn's information precipitated a mole hunt by the CIA's counterintelligence chief, James Jesus Angleton
. Golitsyn also claimed that the second defector, Nosenko, was in fact a KGB plant. This led to Nosenko's incarceration in solitary confinement for several years. Kisevalter apparently "never accepted the case for a mole in the CIA or the argument that Nosenko was planted by the KGB"
Kisevalter's final assignment before his retirement in 1970 was training new CIA operations officers. He received the CIA's highest award, the Distinguished Intelligence Medal
. In 1997, when the CIA celebrated its 50th anniversary, Kisevalter was designated one of its 50 Trailblazers. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery
Pyotr Semyonovich Popov
Pyotr Semyonovich Popov was a major in the Soviet military intelligence apparatus . He was the first GRU officer successfully recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency...
, the first Soviet GRU
GRU
GRU or Glavnoye Razvedyvatel'noye Upravleniye is the foreign military intelligence directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation...
officer run by the CIA, and Colonel Oleg Penkovsky
Oleg Penkovsky
Oleg Vladimirovich Penkovsky, codenamed HERO ; April 23, 1919, Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia, Soviet Russia, – May 16, 1963, Soviet Union), was a colonel with Soviet military intelligence in the late 1950s and early 1960s who informed the United Kingdom and the United States about the Soviet Union...
.
Early life
George Kisevalter was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, the son of a Russian Army munitions expert and grandson of a Russian deputy finance minister. In 1915, the elder Kisevalter, accompanied by his family, was sent to the United States in order to purchase weapons for the TsarTsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
. The Bolshevik Revolution forced the Kisevalters to remain in the United States, where they eventually took US citizenship.
The Kisevalters settled in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where the young George attended Stuyvesant High School
Stuyvesant High School
Stuyvesant High School , commonly referred to as Stuy , is a New York City public high school that specializes in mathematics and science. The school opened in 1904 on Manhattan's East Side and moved to a new building in Battery Park City in 1992. Stuyvesant is noted for its strong academic...
. In 1926, he entered Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
to study engineering. Among his classmates was Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller was the 41st Vice President of the United States , serving under President Gerald Ford, and the 49th Governor of New York , as well as serving the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower administrations in a variety of positions...
.
Introduction to Intelligence
Kisevalter spent much of World War II as an army officer involved in supporting the Soviet war effort through the Lend-LeaseLend-Lease
Lend-Lease was the program under which the United States of America supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, China, Free France, and other Allied nations with materiel between 1941 and 1945. It was signed into law on March 11, 1941, a year and a half after the outbreak of war in Europe in...
Program. His first experience with intelligence came in 1944 when, as a fluent Russian speaker, he was assigned to military intelligence in order to work on Soviet intelligence projects. Because of his growing expertise in Soviet matters, as well as his German language skill, Kisevalter was one of the officers who interviewed Major General Reinhard Gehlen
Reinhard Gehlen
Reinhard Gehlen was a General in the German Army during World War II, who served as chief of intelligence-gathering on the Eastern Front. After the war, he was recruited by the United States military to set up a spy ring directed against the Soviet Union , and eventually became head of the West...
, after the latter's surrender to the US military. Gehlen had been the German chief of intelligence for the eastern front, and was well versed in Soviet military and political affairs.
Popov and Penkovsky
Kisevalter had a brief civilian career before joining the CIA. By 1953, he was a branch chief in the Soviet Division of the Directorate of OperationsNational Clandestine Service
The National Clandestine Service is one of the four main components of the Central Intelligence Agency...
. Also in 1953, a major of the GRU
GRU
GRU or Glavnoye Razvedyvatel'noye Upravleniye is the foreign military intelligence directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation...
named Pyotr Semyonovich Popov
Pyotr Semyonovich Popov
Pyotr Semyonovich Popov was a major in the Soviet military intelligence apparatus . He was the first GRU officer successfully recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency...
contacted American intelligence in Vienna and offered to spy for the United States. Kisevalter was selected as Popov's handler. Based in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Kisevalter spent the next five years handling Popov, who provided the United States with detailed information on Soviet military plans and capabilities. During the period when he spied for the United States, Popov was considered to be "the CIA's most important agent." Kisevalter's involvement came to an end with Popov's capture and subsequent execution in 1959.
In 1961, Kisevalter was assigned to handle another GRU walk-in, Colonel Oleg Penkovsky
Oleg Penkovsky
Oleg Vladimirovich Penkovsky, codenamed HERO ; April 23, 1919, Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia, Soviet Russia, – May 16, 1963, Soviet Union), was a colonel with Soviet military intelligence in the late 1950s and early 1960s who informed the United Kingdom and the United States about the Soviet Union...
. For almost two years, Kisevalter and the British Secret Intelligence Service
Secret Intelligence Service
The Secret Intelligence Service is responsible for supplying the British Government with foreign intelligence. Alongside the internal Security Service , the Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence Intelligence , it operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence...
(MI-6) jointly handled Penkovsky, who provided them with vital information on Soviet missile capabilities. Penkovsky's information was critical to the resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation among the Soviet Union, Cuba and the United States in October 1962, during the Cold War...
. However, in 1962, Penkovsky was arrested by the KGB
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...
and subsequently executed.
Later Career and Retirement
After Penkovsky's execution in 1963, Kisevalter continued to be involved in agent recruitment and handling, including the cases of KGB walk-ins Anatoliy GolitsynAnatoliy Golitsyn
Anatoliy Mikhaylovich Golitsyn CBE is a Soviet KGB defector and author of two books about the long-term deception strategy of the KGB leadership. He was born in Piryatin, Ukrainian SSR...
and Yuri Nosenko
Yuri Nosenko
Lt. Col. Yuri Ivanovich Nosenko was a KGB defector and a figure of significant controversy within the U.S. intelligence community, since his claims contradicted another defector, Anatoliy Golitsyn, who believed he was a KGB plant...
. Golitsyn's information precipitated a mole hunt by the CIA's counterintelligence chief, James Jesus Angleton
James Jesus Angleton
James Jesus Angleton was chief of the Central Intelligence Agency's counterintelligence staff from 1954 to 1975...
. Golitsyn also claimed that the second defector, Nosenko, was in fact a KGB plant. This led to Nosenko's incarceration in solitary confinement for several years. Kisevalter apparently "never accepted the case for a mole in the CIA or the argument that Nosenko was planted by the KGB"
Kisevalter's final assignment before his retirement in 1970 was training new CIA operations officers. He received the CIA's highest award, the Distinguished Intelligence Medal
Distinguished Intelligence Medal
The Distinguished Intelligence Medal is awarded by the Central Intelligence Agency for performance of outstanding services or for achievement of a distinctly exceptional nature in a duty or responsibility.-Notable Recipients:Robert G. Brewster...
. In 1997, when the CIA celebrated its 50th anniversary, Kisevalter was designated one of its 50 Trailblazers. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
See also
- Oleg PenkovskyOleg PenkovskyOleg Vladimirovich Penkovsky, codenamed HERO ; April 23, 1919, Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia, Soviet Russia, – May 16, 1963, Soviet Union), was a colonel with Soviet military intelligence in the late 1950s and early 1960s who informed the United Kingdom and the United States about the Soviet Union...
- Anatoliy GolitsynAnatoliy GolitsynAnatoliy Mikhaylovich Golitsyn CBE is a Soviet KGB defector and author of two books about the long-term deception strategy of the KGB leadership. He was born in Piryatin, Ukrainian SSR...
- James Jesus AngletonJames Jesus AngletonJames Jesus Angleton was chief of the Central Intelligence Agency's counterintelligence staff from 1954 to 1975...