Ivan Savchenko
Encyclopedia
Ivan Tikhonovich Savchenko (born 1908) was a Soviet Communist Party
and KGB
executive. Savchenko made a career as a political officer
in the Red Army
during World War II
. A protege of Nikita Khrushchev
and Leonid Brezhnev
, Savchenko transferred to the Ministry of State Security (the predecessor to the KGB) in 1951. In 1952 he was promoted to the chief of the Special Services Department (GUSS, a cryptanalysis
and information security
branch of the Central Committee
), in 1953 to the Chief of the KGB's Eighth Chief Directorate. His record at the national Party and KGB levels was lackluster, and 1959 he was transferred from Moscow
to Chişinău
as the head of the Moldavian SSR
KGB. In 1967–1979 Savchenko represented the KGB in Romania
and Bulgaria
.
and cryptanalysis
service.
GUSS was created in 1942 by (then) major Ivan Shevelev. In 1949 the service was transferred from the NKVD
control under direct management of the Central Committee. Shevelev, otherwise a capable SIGINT officer, was not able to overcome the shortage of qualified staff and the departmental rivalry with the stronger GRU
force. In June 1952 Shevelev, now a Lieutenant General, was replaced by Savchenko. After the death of Joseph Stalin
GUSS was reincorporated into the KGB as its Eighth Directorate, with Savchenko in command. Savchenko, a career apparatchik
without technical or intelligence background, "proved to be a major disappointment given his lack of understanding of the technical aspects ... and his well-advertized ambition to get promoted out of GUSS."
. He assumed control over Moldovan KGB at the time when its rights were limited and duties extended. The border guard troops, reporting to KGB general Mordovets, once subordinated to the Moldovan KGB, now reported directly to Moscow. Savchenko, a Party apparatchik tasked with increaing the Party influence in the KGB, established himself as a capable executive with good interpersonal communication skills. He refused to recruit anyone with less than a university degree, and willfully recruited Moldovan nationals.
His rule in Moldova was marked by the food crisis of the 1960s and its consequence, the rise in black market trading which the KGB was never able to control. In line with Khrushchev's anti-religious campaign, Moldovan KGB actively repressed the church. Many churches and monasteries were closed, the remaining ones infiltrated by the KGB agents and directly regulated from the KGB offices. As the number of foreign tourists increased, Savchenko had to focus on this threat too. The Council of Ministers, concerned about foreign infiltration, installed tight controls over the contacts between foreigners and locals, particularly scientists and academic. Savchenko's influence was gradually diluted since 1962, with the rise of Yuri Andropov
, an enemy of Khrushchev. In the late 1960s Major General Savchenko was relieved from his Moldovan appointment and transferred to less important foreign service in the Soviet bloc.
Savchenko died in Moscow
at the age of 92.
Communist Party of the Soviet Union
The Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the only legal, ruling political party in the Soviet Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the world...
and 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...
executive. Savchenko made a career as a political officer
Political officer
Political officer may refer to:*Political officer , Occasionally, a synonym for political commissar*Political officer , in the context of the British Empire, for a pseudo-ambassadorial role in areas bordering imperial territories...
in the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. A protege of Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
and Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev – 10 November 1982) was the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , presiding over the country from 1964 until his death in 1982. His eighteen-year term as General Secretary was second only to that of Joseph Stalin in...
, Savchenko transferred to the Ministry of State Security (the predecessor to the KGB) in 1951. In 1952 he was promoted to the chief of the Special Services Department (GUSS, a cryptanalysis
Cryptanalysis
Cryptanalysis is the study of methods for obtaining the meaning of encrypted information, without access to the secret information that is normally required to do so. Typically, this involves knowing how the system works and finding a secret key...
and information security
Information security
Information security means protecting information and information systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, perusal, inspection, recording or destruction....
branch of the Central Committee
Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
The Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , abbreviated in Russian as ЦК, "Tse-ka", earlier was also called as the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party ...
), in 1953 to the Chief of the KGB's Eighth Chief Directorate. His record at the national Party and KGB levels was lackluster, and 1959 he was transferred from Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
to Chişinău
Chisinau
Chișinău is the capital and largest municipality of Moldova. It is also its main industrial and commercial centre and is located in the middle of the country, on the river Bîc...
as the head of the Moldavian SSR
Moldavian SSR
The Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic , commonly abbreviated to Moldavian SSR or MSSR, was one of the 15 republics of the Soviet Union...
KGB. In 1967–1979 Savchenko represented the KGB in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
.
Service in Moscow
In June 1951 Savchenko, who already earned special operations experience in the fight against Ukrainian nationalists, held an insignificant bureaucratic appointment in the national offices of the Central Committee in Moscow. In July 1951, after the fall of State Security chief Victor Abakumov, colonel Savchenko was hastily recruited to the Ministry of State Security (MGB). Savchenko temporarily held the post of the Deputy Chairman of the MGB, but apparently had not done anything notable in this office. One year later he was transferred back to the Central Committee, and appointed chief of its Special Services Department (GUSS), a SIGINTSIGINT
Signals intelligence is intelligence-gathering by interception of signals, whether between people , whether involving electronic signals not directly used in communication , or combinations of the two...
and cryptanalysis
Cryptanalysis
Cryptanalysis is the study of methods for obtaining the meaning of encrypted information, without access to the secret information that is normally required to do so. Typically, this involves knowing how the system works and finding a secret key...
service.
GUSS was created in 1942 by (then) major Ivan Shevelev. In 1949 the service was transferred from the NKVD
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
control under direct management of the Central Committee. Shevelev, otherwise a capable SIGINT officer, was not able to overcome the shortage of qualified staff and the departmental rivalry with the stronger 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...
force. In June 1952 Shevelev, now a Lieutenant General, was replaced by Savchenko. After the death of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
GUSS was reincorporated into the KGB as its Eighth Directorate, with Savchenko in command. Savchenko, a career apparatchik
Apparatchik
Apparatchik is a Russian colloquial term for a full-time, professional functionary of the Communist Party or government; i.e., an agent of the governmental or party "apparat" that held any position of bureaucratic or political responsibility, with the exception of the higher ranks of management...
without technical or intelligence background, "proved to be a major disappointment given his lack of understanding of the technical aspects ... and his well-advertized ambition to get promoted out of GUSS."
Service in Moldova
In 1959 Savchenko was transferred to Moldova and appointed chief of the State Committee of Security of Moldavian SSRMoldavian SSR
The Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic , commonly abbreviated to Moldavian SSR or MSSR, was one of the 15 republics of the Soviet Union...
. He assumed control over Moldovan KGB at the time when its rights were limited and duties extended. The border guard troops, reporting to KGB general Mordovets, once subordinated to the Moldovan KGB, now reported directly to Moscow. Savchenko, a Party apparatchik tasked with increaing the Party influence in the KGB, established himself as a capable executive with good interpersonal communication skills. He refused to recruit anyone with less than a university degree, and willfully recruited Moldovan nationals.
His rule in Moldova was marked by the food crisis of the 1960s and its consequence, the rise in black market trading which the KGB was never able to control. In line with Khrushchev's anti-religious campaign, Moldovan KGB actively repressed the church. Many churches and monasteries were closed, the remaining ones infiltrated by the KGB agents and directly regulated from the KGB offices. As the number of foreign tourists increased, Savchenko had to focus on this threat too. The Council of Ministers, concerned about foreign infiltration, installed tight controls over the contacts between foreigners and locals, particularly scientists and academic. Savchenko's influence was gradually diluted since 1962, with the rise of Yuri Andropov
Yuri Andropov
Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov was a Soviet politician and the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 12 November 1982 until his death fifteen months later.-Early life:...
, an enemy of Khrushchev. In the late 1960s Major General Savchenko was relieved from his Moldovan appointment and transferred to less important foreign service in the Soviet bloc.
Savchenko died in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
at the age of 92.