List of Soviet and Eastern Bloc defectors
Encyclopedia
Soon after the formation of the Soviet Union
, emigration restrictions were put in place
to keep citizens from leaving the various countries of the Soviet Socialist Republics, though some defections still occurred. During and after World War II, similar restrictions were put in place in non-Soviet countries of the Eastern Bloc
, which consisted of the Communist states of Eastern Europe.
Up until 1952, however, the lines between East Germany and the western occupied zones could be easily crossed in most places. Accordingly, before 1961, most of that east-west flow took place between East and West Germany
, with over 3.5 million East Germans emigrating to West Germany before 1961. On August 13, 1961, a barbed-wire barrier, which would become the Berlin Wall
separating East and West Berlin, was erected by East Germany.
Although international movement was, for the most part, strictly controlled, there was a steady loss through escapees who were able to use ingenious methods to evade frontier security. Numerous notable Eastern Bloc
citizens defect
ed to non-Eastern Bloc countries.
Among the notable defectors from East Germany, the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of Poland
, the People's Republic of Bulgaria, the People's Republic of Romania, the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic
, the People's Republic of Hungary
and the People's Republic of Albania before those countries' conversions from Communist states in the early 1990s were the following List of Eastern Bloc defectors.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, emigration restrictions were put in place
Eastern Bloc emigration and defection
Eastern Bloc emigration and defection was a point of controversy during the Cold War. After World War II, emigration restrictions were imposed by countries in the Eastern Bloc, which consisted of the Soviet Union and its satellite states in Eastern and Central Europe...
to keep citizens from leaving the various countries of the Soviet Socialist Republics, though some defections still occurred. During and after World War II, similar restrictions were put in place in non-Soviet countries of the Eastern Bloc
Eastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
, which consisted of the Communist states of Eastern Europe.
Up until 1952, however, the lines between East Germany and the western occupied zones could be easily crossed in most places. Accordingly, before 1961, most of that east-west flow took place between East and West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
, with over 3.5 million East Germans emigrating to West Germany before 1961. On August 13, 1961, a barbed-wire barrier, which would become the Berlin Wall
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin...
separating East and West Berlin, was erected by East Germany.
Although international movement was, for the most part, strictly controlled, there was a steady loss through escapees who were able to use ingenious methods to evade frontier security. Numerous notable Eastern Bloc
Eastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
citizens defect
Defection
In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state or political entity in exchange for allegiance to another. More broadly, it involves abandoning a person, cause or doctrine to whom or to which one is bound by some tie, as of allegiance or duty.This term is also applied,...
ed to non-Eastern Bloc countries.
Among the notable defectors from East Germany, the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of Poland
People's Republic of Poland
The People's Republic of Poland was the official name of Poland from 1952 to 1990. Although the Soviet Union took control of the country immediately after the liberation from Nazi Germany in 1944, the name of the state was not changed until eight years later...
, the People's Republic of Bulgaria, the People's Republic of Romania, the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic
Czechoslovak Socialist Republic
The Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was the official name of Czechoslovakia from 1960 until end of 1989 , a Soviet satellite state of the Eastern Bloc....
, the People's Republic of Hungary
People's Republic of Hungary
The People's Republic of Hungary or Hungarian People's Republic was the official state name of Hungary from 1949 to 1989 during its Communist period under the guidance of the Soviet Union. The state remained in existence until 1989 when opposition forces consolidated in forcing the regime to...
and the People's Republic of Albania before those countries' conversions from Communist states in the early 1990s were the following List of Eastern Bloc defectors.
| Defector | Profession/Prominence | Birthplace | Defection | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victor Soultanbeieff Victor Soultanbeieff Victor Ivanovich Soultanbéieff was a Belgian chess master.-Life:... |
chess | Ukraine | 1921 | Escaped to Belgium |
| George Balanchine George Balanchine George Balanchine , born Giorgi Balanchivadze in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to a Georgian father and a Russian mother, was one of the 20th century's most famous choreographers, a developer of ballet in the United States, co-founder and balletmaster of New York City Ballet... |
choreographer | Russia | 1924 | Defected during tour of Germany to Weimar Republic Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government... |
| Boris Bazhanov Boris Bazhanov Boris Georgiyevich Bazhanov , sometimes also spelled Bajanov, was a secretary in the Politburo and the personal secretary of the leader of the Soviet Union, Joseph Stalin from August 1923 through the end of 1925. Bazhanov held different positions at the Politburo from 1925 to 1928... |
Politburo Secretary | Poland | 1928 | Defected on a train to Iran; assassins later sent after him |
| Georges Agabekov Georges Agabekov Georges Agabekov , was a Soviet Red Army soldier, Chekist, OGPU Agent, Chief of OGPU Eastern Section... |
OGPU | Armenia | 1930 | Defected in France; led the manhunt for Bazhanov Boris Bazhanov Boris Georgiyevich Bazhanov , sometimes also spelled Bajanov, was a secretary in the Politburo and the personal secretary of the leader of the Soviet Union, Joseph Stalin from August 1923 through the end of 1925. Bazhanov held different positions at the Politburo from 1925 to 1928... before defecting |
| Grigol Robakidze Grigol Robakidze Grigol Robakidze was a Georgian writer, publicist, and public figure primarily known for his exotic prose and anti-Soviet émigré activities.... |
author | Georgia | 1930 | Defected to Germany Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government... ; primarily known for his exotic prose and anti-Soviet émigré activities. |
| George Gamow George Gamow George Gamow , born Georgiy Antonovich Gamov , was a Russian-born theoretical physicist and cosmologist. He discovered alpha decay via quantum tunneling and worked on radioactive decay of the atomic nucleus, star formation, stellar nucleosynthesis, Big Bang nucleosynthesis, cosmic microwave... |
physicist | Ukraine | 1933 | first tried to kayak across the Black Sea; defected in Brussels Brussels Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union... , Belgium; later discovered alpha decay via quantum tunneling Quantum tunnelling Quantum tunnelling refers to the quantum mechanical phenomenon where a particle tunnels through a barrier that it classically could not surmount. This plays an essential role in several physical phenomena, such as the nuclear fusion that occurs in main sequence stars like the sun, and has important... |
| Ignace Reiss | 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.... |
Russia | 1937 | Former head of Soviet intelligence services; assassinated by 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.... |
| Walter Krivitsky Walter Krivitsky Walter Germanovich Krivitsky was a Soviet intelligence officer who revealed plans of signing Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact before defecting weeks before the outbreak of World War II.... |
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.... |
Poland | 1937 | Defected in Paris, France after assassination of Poretsky; Apparent 1941 suicide in the U.S. may have been an NKVD assassination |
| Genrikh Lyushkov Genrikh Lyushkov Genrikh Samoilovich Lyushkov was an officer in the Soviet secret police and its highest-ranking defector.... |
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.... |
Russia | 1938 | Crossed the border into Manchukuo Manchukuo Manchukuo or Manshū-koku was a puppet state in Manchuria and eastern Inner Mongolia, governed under a form of constitutional monarchy. The region was the historical homeland of the Manchus, who founded the Qing Empire in China... with secret documents; family arrested and sent to Gulag Gulag The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of... ; several died |
| Alexander Orlov | 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.... |
Belarus | 1938 | Fled while stationed in Spain to avoid execution in the Great Purge Great Purge The Great Purge was a series of campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated by Joseph Stalin from 1936 to 1938... |
| Abdurakhman Avtorkhanov Abdurakhman Avtorkhanov Abdurakhman Avtorkhanov was an acclaimed Soviet historian and writer turned anti-communist. He worked primarily in the fields of Soviet history and History of the CPSU... |
author | Russia | 1942 | Sent to infiltrate anti-Soviet Chechens, he joined them instead |
| Defector | Profession/Prominence | Birthplace | Defection | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Svetlana Alliluyeva Svetlana Alliluyeva Svetlana Iosifovna Alliluyeva , later known as Lana Peters, was the youngest child and only daughter of Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin and Nadezhda Alliluyeva, Stalin's second wife... |
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... 's daughter |
Russia | 1967 | She defected to the United States via New Delhi New Delhi New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is... , India. She denounced her father 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... 's regime, though she softened her criticism of him in the 1980s. |
| G. M. Dimitrov G. M. Dimitrov Georgi Mihov Dimitrov , known as Gemeto to distinguish him from Georgi Dimitrov Mihaylov, was a Bulgarian politician, a leading figure of the Bulgarian Agrarian National Union in the 1930s and 1940s and an opponent of Nazism and communism alike.G. M... |
politician | Bulgaria | 1945 | He was saved from execution by U.S. ambassador. He later founded anti-communist organizations. |
| Peter Fechter Peter Fechter Peter Fechter was a German bricklayer from Berlin in what became East Germany in 1945. He was aged just 18, one of the first victims of the Berlin Wall's border guards while trying to cross over to what was then West Berlin.-Background:After World War II, Germany was governed jointly by an Allied... |
bricklayer | East Germany | 1962 | He was shot trying to escape over the Berlin Wall Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin... and bled to death in the Wall's "death strip" over the course of an hour with no medical aid. |
| Igor Gouzenko Igor Gouzenko Igor Sergeyevich Gouzenko was a cipher clerk for the Soviet Embassy to Canada in Ottawa, Ontario. He defected on September 5, 1945, with 109 documents on Soviet espionage activities in the West... |
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... |
Russia | 1945 | He defected in Ottawa Ottawa Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario... , Canada and helped uncover Communist spy rings. |
| Anatoli Granovsky Anatoli Granovsky Anatoli Granovsky was an NKVD agent who defected to the West in 1946 and authored an autobiographical book about his career in Soviet intelligence. Granovsky was the son of a high-ranking Soviet bureaucrat, Mickail Granovsky, who was a victim of the Stalinist Purges of the late 1930s... |
MGB | Russia | 1946 | He defected in Stockholm Stockholm Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area... , Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.... and wrote an autobiography. |
| Milan Švec | Czechoslovak Embassy, Washington DC | Czechoslovakia | 1985 | He defected in Washington DC, where he was Minister-Counselor. He later became a commentator on East-West relations. |
| Vladimir Petrov Vladimir Mikhaylovich Petrov (diplomat) Vladimir Mikhaylovich Petrov was a member of the Soviet Union's clandestine services who became famous in 1954 for his defection to Australia.-Early life:... |
diplomat | Russia | 1954 | Defected on a mission in Australia. Started the Petrov Affair Petrov Affair The Petrov Affair was a dramatic Cold War spy incident in Australia in April 1954, concerning Vladimir Petrov, Third Secretary of the Soviet embassy in Canberra.- History :... |
| Arkady Shevchenko Arkady Shevchenko Arkady Nikolayevich Shevchenko , a Soviet diplomat, was the highest-ranking Soviet official to defect to the West.Shevchenko joined the diplomatic service of the Soviet Union as a young man and rose through the ranks of the Soviet Foreign Ministry, becoming advisor to Andrei Gromyko, Minister for... |
UN Undersecretary General | Russia | 1978 | Spied for the U.S. for three years before defection. His wife in Moscow died two months after his defection purportedly of suicide. |
| Walter Polovchak Walter Polovchak Walter Polovchak is a Ukrainian-American who, as a child, became the center of the legal case Polovchak v. Meese after refusing to leave Chicago, Illinois and return to Ukraine in the Soviet Union with his parents when he was 12.... |
underage defector | Ukraine | 1980 | Fled from his parents when they were about to return to then-Soviet-republic. Granted political asylum as a naturalized U.S. citizen upon turning 18 on October 3, 1985. Was subject of lengthy political cause celebre Cause célèbre A is an issue or incident arousing widespread controversy, outside campaigning and heated public debate. The term is particularly used in connection with celebrated legal cases. It is a French phrase in common English use... during those five years. |
| Romuald Spasowski Romuald Spasowski F. Romuald Spasowski , once an ardent Communist and Poland's ambassador to the United States, is best known for having defected at the height of the Solidarity crisis in 1981.-Early life:... |
ambassador | Poland | 1981 | Defected when Martial Law was declared in 1981. |
| Valdo Randpere Valdo Randpere Valdo Randpere is an Estonian musician and businessman.He graduated from University of Tartu with Law degree in 1982 .... |
Deputy minister of Justice | Estonia | 1986 | Defected via Kotka Kotka Kotka is a town and municipality of Finland. Its former name is Rochensalm.Kotka is located on the coast of the Gulf of Finland at the mouth of Kymi River and it is part of the Kymenlaakso region in southern Finland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water.... , Finland to Sweden. Fled a Soviet crackdown on Estonian nationalism. |
| Viktor Belenko Viktor Belenko Viktor Ivanovich Belenko is Soviet defector and aerospace engineer and lecturer. Belenko was sentenced to death in the Soviet Union for state treason. He was born in Nalchik, Russian SFSR in a Ukrainian family... |
pilot | Russia | 1976 | Flew a MiG-25 from Chuguyevka Chuguyevka Chuguyevka is a military air base in Primorski Krai, Russia. The base's primary objective was to scramble aircraft against SR-71 flights over Vladivostok... , Primorsky Krai Primorsky Krai Primorsky Krai , informally known as Primorye , is a federal subject of Russia . Primorsky means "maritime" in Russian, hence the region is sometimes referred to as Maritime Province or Maritime Territory. Its administrative center is in the city of Vladivostok... to Hakodate Hakodate, Hokkaido is a city and port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture.Hakodate was Japan's first city whose port was opened to foreign trade in 1854 as a result of Convention of Kanagawa, and used to be the most important port in northern Japan... Hokkaido Hokkaido , formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel... , Japan. |
| Jan Šejna Jan Sejna Jan Šejna , also Sejna in English, was, in the time of communist Czechoslovakia, a Major General of the Czechoslovak Army. After losing political power and influence at the beginning of the Prague Spring, he sought refuge in the U.S. consulate in Trieste and defected to the United States... |
General | Czechoslovakia | 1968 | Fled after Prague Spring Prague Spring The Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II... to the United States. |
| Conrad Schumann Conrad Schumann Hans Conrad Schumann was an East German soldier who famously defected to West Germany during the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961.-Early life:... |
soldier | East Germany | 1961 | Photographed jumping the Berlin Wall Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin... during construction. |
| József Mindszenty | Cardinal | Hungary | 1956 | Fled to U.S. Embassy in Budapest Budapest Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter... during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. Later moved to Austria. |
| Ryszard Kuklinski Ryszard Kuklinski Ryszard Jerzy Kukliński was a Polish colonel, Cold War spy and whistleblower. He passed top secret Warsaw Pact documents to the CIA between 1971 and 1981... |
Polish colonel | Poland | 1981 | Spied for USA for 10 years after 1970 massacre of Polish workers Polish 1970 protests The Polish 1970 protests were protests that occurred in northern Poland in December 1970. The protests were sparked by a sudden increase of prices of food and other everyday items... . Defected to United States. Sentenced to death in absentia In absentia In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In... . Later died of a stroke. Sentence was annulled in 1998 by the Polish Supreme Court. |
| Vladimir Pasechnik Vladimir Pasechnik Vladimir Pasechnik was a senior Soviet biologist and bioweaponeer who defected to the UK in 1989, alerting Western intelligence to the vast scope of Moscow's clandestine biological warfare program, known as Biopreparat... |
bioweapons engineer | Russia | 1989 | Defected in Paris, France; to warn the west about USSR bioweapons. |
| Franciszek Jarecki Franciszek Jarecki Franciszek Jarecki was a pilot in the Polish Air Force, who became famous in early 1953 when he escaped Soviet-controlled Poland in a MiG-15 jet, which was one of the best planes owned by the Soviets at that time.Jarecki was born in 1931 in Gdów, a town near Kraków... |
pilot | Poland | 1953 | Flew MiG-15 from Słupsk, Poland People's Republic of Poland The People's Republic of Poland was the official name of Poland from 1952 to 1990. Although the Soviet Union took control of the country immediately after the liberation from Nazi Germany in 1944, the name of the state was not changed until eight years later... to Rønne Airport on Danish Denmark Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark... island of Bornholm Bornholm Bornholm is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea located to the east of the rest of Denmark, the south of Sweden, and the north of Poland. The main industries on the island include fishing, arts and crafts like glass making and pottery using locally worked clay, and dairy farming. Tourism is... |
| Jonas Pleškys Jonas Pleškys Jonas Plaskus or Jonas Pleškys was a Soviet Navy submarine tender captain born in Lithuania. He died in California, United States.... |
submarine tender captain | Lithuania | 1961 | Sailed vessel to Sweden; sentenced to death; CIA hid him from USSR |
| Alexander Zuyev Alexander Zuyev Alexander Zuyev was a captain of the former-Soviet Air Force who piloted his Mikoyan MiG-29 to Trabzon, Turkey on May 20, 1989.... |
pilot | Russia | 1989 | Flew Mikoyan MiG-29 Mikoyan MiG-29 The Mikoyan MiG-29 is a fourth-generation jet fighter aircraft designed in the Soviet Union for an air superiority role. Developed in the 1970s by the Mikoyan design bureau, it entered service with the Soviet Air Force in 1983, and remains in use by the Russian Air Force as well as in many other... to Trabzon Trabzon Trabzon is a city on the Black Sea coast of north-eastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. Trabzon, located on the historical Silk Road, became a melting pot of religions, languages and culture for centuries and a trade gateway to Iran in the southeast and the Caucasus to the northeast... , Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... |
| Nicholas Shadrin Nicholas Shadrin Nicholas George Shadrin, born Nikolai Fedorovich Artamonov, was a Soviet Naval officer who defected to the United States of America in 1959.... |
naval officer | Russia | 1959 | Defected in Sweden; later allegedly killed 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... |
| Simonas "Simas" Kudirka | Soviet seaman | Lithuania | 1970 | Leaped from a Soviet ship to a United States Coast Guard United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency... ship |
| Józef Światło | UB Ministry of Public Security of Poland The Ministry of Public Security of Poland was a Polish communist secret police, intelligence and counter-espionage service operating from 1945 to 1954 under Jakub Berman of the Politburo... |
Poland | 1953 | Defected on a mission in East Berlin; He revealed it in broadcasts on Radio Free Europe internal struggle in the Communist Party (PZPR) and the true face of the Security Office (UB). The result of his escape was the liquidation of the Ministry of Security (UB). |
| Michael Goleniewski Michael Goleniewski Michael Goleniewski a.k.a. 'SNIPER', 'LAVINIA', , was a Polish officer in the People's Republic of Poland's Ministry Of Public Security, the deputy head of military counterintelligence GZI WP, later head of the technical and scientific section of the Polish intelligence,and a spy for the Soviet... |
SB MSW | Poland | 1961 | Defected in West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... ; sentenced to death after defection; then worked for the CIA. Before he fled he spied for the CIA under the cover name sniper, but the CIA did not know his identity until his escape |
| Konstantin Volkov Konstantin Volkov (diplomat) Konstantin Volkov was an NKVD agent and would-be defector.-Approach:In early September 1945 Konstantin Volkov, Vice Consul for the Soviet Union in Istanbul, Turkey, turned up at the British Consulate General and told an astonished British Official that he wanted to defect... |
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.... |
Russia | 1945 | Deputy head of 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.... in Istanbul Istanbul Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and... , Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... ; contacted the British Istanbul consulate about defection, was arrested by the Soviets and disappeared forever (possibly executed) |
| Nikolai Khokhlov | 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... |
Russia | 1953 | Refused to assassinate George Okolovich; defected in West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... and KGB attempted to assassinate him in 1957 |
| Ion Mihai Pacepa Ion Mihai Pacepa Ion Mihai Pacepa is the highest-ranking intelligence official ever to have defected from the former Eastern Bloc. He is now a United States citizen, a writer, and a columnist.... |
Securitate Securitate The Securitate was the secret police agency of Communist Romania. Previously, the Romanian secret police was called Siguranţa Statului. Founded on August 30, 1948, with help from the Soviet NKVD, the Securitate was abolished in December 1989, shortly after President Nicolae Ceaușescu was... |
Romania | 1978 | He was a two-star Romanian Securitate Securitate The Securitate was the secret police agency of Communist Romania. Previously, the Romanian secret police was called Siguranţa Statului. Founded on August 30, 1948, with help from the Soviet NKVD, the Securitate was abolished in December 1989, shortly after President Nicolae Ceaușescu was... general and personal advisor to Nicolae Ceauşescu Nicolae Ceausescu Nicolae Ceaușescu was a Romanian Communist politician. He was General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and as such was the country's second and last Communist leader... . He defected in the American Embassy in Bonn Bonn Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999.... , West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... . He was sentenced to death twice in absentia In absentia In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In... with a $2 million bounty. Carlos the Jackal Carlos the Jackal Ilich Ramírez Sánchez , better known as Carlos the Jackal, is a Venezuelan pro-Palestinian currently serving a life sentence in France for shooting to death two French secret agents and a Lebanese informer in 1975.... was sent to assassinate him. |
| Reino Häyhänen Reino Häyhänen Reino Häyhänen, was an ethnic Finn Soviet Lieutenant Colonel who defected to the United States.-Birth and education:... |
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... |
Russia | 1957 | He defected in Paris after spending several years spying undercover in the west. |
| Christo Javacheff Christo and Jeanne-Claude Christo and Jeanne-Claude were a married couple who created environmental works of art... |
environmentalist artist | Bulgaria | 1957 | He escaped from Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992... to Austria. |
| Matei Pavel Haiducu Matei Pavel Haiducu Matei Pavel Haiducu was a Romanian secret agent who defected to France in 1981. He belonged to the "Direcţia Informaţii Externe" of the Securitate.He was born in Bucharest as Matei Pavel Hirsch... |
Securitate Securitate The Securitate was the secret police agency of Communist Romania. Previously, the Romanian secret police was called Siguranţa Statului. Founded on August 30, 1948, with help from the Soviet NKVD, the Securitate was abolished in December 1989, shortly after President Nicolae Ceaușescu was... |
Romania | 1978 | He defected to France in 1981 on an industrial espionage mission. He was sentenced to death in absentia In absentia In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In... . |
| Anatoliy Golitsyn Anatoliy 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... |
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... |
Ukraine | 1961 | He defected to the United States via Helsinki Helsinki Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is... , Finland and Haaparanta, Sweden with his wife and daughter when he was stationed in Helsinki Helsinki Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is... . He made sensational claims after his defection. |
| Oleg Lyalin Oleg Lyalin Oleg Lyalin, , a former Soviet agent who defected from the KGB. His defection led to the expulsion of 105 Soviet officials suspected as being Soviet spies from Britain on 25 September 1971.Mr... |
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... |
Russia | 1971 | He defected in London, UK after being arrested in London; exposed dozens of KGB agents in London |
| Stanislav Levchenko Stanislav Levchenko Stanislav Alexandrovich Levchenko is a former Russian KGB major who defected to the United States in 1979. He obtained U.S... |
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... |
Russia | 1979 | Defected during a mission in Tokyo, Japan ; detailed 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... 's Japanese spy network |
| Vladimir Kuzichkin Vladimir Kuzichkin Vladimir Anatoljevich Kuzichkin Владимир Анатольевич Кузичкин now 61. He was a Soviet KGB officer, major who defected to the Tehran Station of the British Secret Intelligence Service in 1982... |
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... |
Russia | 1982 | Defected to a British intelligence Tehran station and then to the United Kingdom |
| Vitaly Yurchenko Vitaly Yurchenko Vitaly Yurchenko is a former high-ranking KGB officer in the Soviet Union. In 1985, after 25 years of service in the KGB, he made a fake defection to the United States during an assignment in Rome. After providing the names of two U.S. intelligence officers who were KGB agents, Yurchenko slipped... |
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... |
Russia | 1985 | Defected in Rome, Italy; exposed two 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... /CIA double agents, Ronald Pelton Ronald Pelton Ronald William Pelton was an National Security Agency intelligence analyst who was convicted in 1986 of spying for and selling secrets to the Soviet Union. He reportedly has a photographic memory as he passed no documents to the Soviets... and Edward Lee Howard Edward Lee Howard Edward Lee Victor Howard was a CIA case officer who defected to the Soviet Union.... ; curiously ended up back with 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... |
| Oleg Gordievsky Oleg Gordievsky Oleg Antonovich Gordievsky , CMG , is a former Colonel of the KGB and KGB Resident-designate and bureau chief in London, who was a secret agent of the British Secret Intelligence Service from 1974 to 1985.-Early career:Oleg Gordievsky attended the Moscow State Institute of International... |
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... |
Russia | 1985 | Defected to UK via Finland; became MI6 double agent after the Soviet 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia; sentenced to death in absentia In absentia In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In... |
| Ladislav Pataki Ladislav Pataki Ladislav Pataki was an American coach, sports scientist, and masters track and field thrower. He defected from Czechoslovakia in 1985 with his wife and daughter, settling in Los Gatos, California... |
sports scientist | Czechoslovakia | 1985 | Defected to US via Rome, Italy; "the highest-ranking Soviet-bloc sports scientist ever to defect to the West" |
| Yuri Krotkov Yuri Krotkov Yuri Vasilevich Krotkov Юрий Васильевич Кротков was a Russian dramatist and film writer. Working as a KGB agent, he defected to the West in 1963.... |
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... |
Georgia | 1963 | Defected while an undercover agent in London, UK; later became a novelist |
| 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... |
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... |
Ukraine | 1964 | Defected in Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution.... , United States; for years, the CIA thought he might be a double agent |
| Evdokia Petrova Evdokia Petrova Evdokia Alexeyevna Petrova was a Russian spy in Australia in the 1950s. She was the wife of Vladimir Petrov, and came to national prominence during the Petrov Affair.... |
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... |
Russia | 1954 | Undercover 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... agent who was the wife of Vladimir Petrov Vladimir Mikhaylovich Petrov (diplomat) Vladimir Mikhaylovich Petrov was a member of the Soviet Union's clandestine services who became famous in 1954 for his defection to Australia.-Early life:... ; defected in Australia |
| Bohdan Stashynsky Bohdan Stashynsky Bohdan Stashynsky is the KGB assassin of Ukrainian nationalist leaders Lev Rebet and Stepan Bandera who were killed in the late 1950s.-Early biography :... |
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... |
Poland | 1961 | Defected in West Berlin West Berlin West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945... ; assassin of Lev Rebet Lev Rebet Lev Rebet was a Ukrainian political writer and anti-communist during World War II. He was a key cabinet member in the Ukrainian government which proclaimed independence on June 30, 1941... and Stepan Bandera Stepan Bandera Stepan Andriyovych Bandera was a Ukrainian politician and one of the leaders of Ukrainian national movement in Western Ukraine , who headed the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists... before defection |
| Mikhail Baryshnikov Mikhail Baryshnikov Mikhail Nikolaevich Baryshnikov is a Soviet and American dancer, choreographer, and actor, often cited alongside Vaslav Nijinsky and Rudolf Nureyev as one of the greatest ballet dancers of the 20th century. After a promising start in the Kirov Ballet in Leningrad, he defected to Canada in 1974... |
ballet | Latvia | 1974 | Defected during tour in Toronto Toronto Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from... , Canada |
| Wolfgang Leonhard Wolfgang Leonhard Wolfgang Leonhard is a German political author, historian, and expert on Communism. He is the only living member of the Ulbricht Group.-Early years:... |
historian | Austria | 1949 | Exiled German Germans The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages.... –Austrian Austrians Austrians are a nation and ethnic group, consisting of the population of the Republic of Austria and its historical predecessor states who share a common Austrian culture and Austrian descent.... communist who returned to Germany after World War II; defected via Yugoslavia Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,... ; traveled to West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... |
| Andrzej Panufnik Andrzej Panufnik Sir Andrzej Panufnik was a Polish composer, pianist, conductor and pedagogue. He became established as one of the leading Polish composers, and as a conductor he was instrumental in the re-establishment of the Warsaw Philharmonic orchestra after World War II... |
composer | Poland | 1954 | Slipped Polish secret police in night time taxi chase in London, UK |
| Maxim Shostakovich Maxim Shostakovich Maxim Dmitrievich Shostakovich is a Russian conductor and pianist. He was the second child of Dmitri Shostakovich and Nina Varzar.Since 1975, he has conducted and popularised many of his father's lesser-known works.... |
composer | Russia | 1981 | Defected on tour in West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... with his son |
| Ivan Diviš Ivan Diviš Ivan Diviš was a significant Czech poet and essayist of the 2nd half of the 20th century.- Biography :... |
poet | Czechoslovakia | 1967 | Fled after Prague Spring Prague Spring The Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II... to West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... and worked for Radio Free Europe Radio Free Europe Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is a broadcaster funded by the U.S. Congress that provides news, information, and analysis to countries in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East "where the free flow of information is either banned by government authorities or not fully developed"... |
| Vladimir Oravsky Vladimir Oravsky Vladimir Oravsky Swedish author and film director. Born 22.1 1947 in Czechoslovakia.Before Oravsky decided to be a full-time writer he made a living in Czechoslovakia as machine engineer and conveyor belt constructor... |
writer | Czechoslovakia | 1968 | Fled after Prague Spring Prague Spring The Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II... to Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.... |
| Sulamith Messerer Sulamith Messerer Sulamith Mikhailovna Messerer was a Russian ballerina and choreographer who laid the foundations for the classical ballet in Japan.Sulamith studied in the Moscow Ballet School under Vasily Tikhomirov and Elisabeth Gerdt and danced in the Bolshoi Theatre from 1926 until 1950. In 1933, she and her... |
ballet | Russia | 1980 | sister purged Great Purge The Great Purge was a series of campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated by Joseph Stalin from 1936 to 1938... ; defected to Britain at 72 to coach ballet |
| Imre Lakatos Imre Lakatos Imre Lakatos was a Hungarian philosopher of mathematics and science, known for his thesis of the fallibility of mathematics and its 'methodology of proofs and refutations' in its pre-axiomatic stages of development, and also for introducing the concept of the 'research programme' in his... |
mathematician | Hungary | 1956 | Fled to 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 and later to Britain after the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 |
| Georgi Markov Georgi Markov Georgi Ivanov Markov was a Bulgarian dissident writer.Markov originally worked as a novelist and playwright, but in 1969 he defected from Bulgaria, then governed by President Todor Zhivkov... |
playwright | Bulgaria | 1969 | Fled to Italy after ban on plays |
| Nora Kovach Nora Kovach Nora Kovach was a Hungarian ballerina who defected in 1953 together with her husband and fellow ballet dancer Istvan Rabovsky, the first highly-publicized defection of individuals in the field of dance to the West from the Soviet bloc.Kovach was raised in Budapest, and was trained as a dancer at... |
ballet | Hungary | 1953 | Escaped with husband Istvan Rabovsky to West Berlin West Berlin West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945... on an East Berlin East Berlin East Berlin was the name given to the eastern part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990. It consisted of the Soviet sector of Berlin that was established in 1945. The American, British and French sectors became West Berlin, a part strongly associated with West Germany but a free city... tour |
| Istvan Rabovsky | ballet | Hungary | 1953 | Escaped with wife Nora Kovach Nora Kovach Nora Kovach was a Hungarian ballerina who defected in 1953 together with her husband and fellow ballet dancer Istvan Rabovsky, the first highly-publicized defection of individuals in the field of dance to the West from the Soviet bloc.Kovach was raised in Budapest, and was trained as a dancer at... to West Berlin West Berlin West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945... on an East Berlin East Berlin East Berlin was the name given to the eastern part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990. It consisted of the Soviet sector of Berlin that was established in 1945. The American, British and French sectors became West Berlin, a part strongly associated with West Germany but a free city... tour |
| Victor Kravchenko | engineer | Ukraine | 1944 | Soviet engineer, witnessed horrors of Holodomor Holodomor The Holodomor was a man-made famine in the Ukrainian SSR between 1932 and 1933. During the famine, which is also known as the "terror-famine in Ukraine" and "famine-genocide in Ukraine", millions of Ukrainians died of starvation in a peacetime catastrophe unprecedented in the history of... ; defected when serving in the Soviet Purchasing Agency in Washington DC in the United States |
| Yuri Bregel Yuri Bregel Yuri Bregel is a prominent academic in the field of Central Asian studies. He is one of the world's leading historians of Islamic Central Asia, and has published a number of import works on the subject.-Biography:... |
scholar | Russia | 1981 | Defected to the United States; helped invigorate Central Eurasian Studies in the west |
| Youri Egorov Youri Egorov Youri Aleksandrovich Egorov was a Soviet classical pianist.-Early years:Born in Kazan, USSR, Youri Egorov studied music at the Kazan Conservatory from the age of 6 until age 17. One of his early teachers was Irina Dubinina, a former pupil of Yakov Zak .... |
pianist | Russia | 1976 | Fled during a tour in Rome, Italy |
| Natalia Makarova Natalia Makarova Nataliya Romanovna Makarova is the legendary Soviet-Russian-born prima ballerina. The History of Dance, published in 1981, notes that “Her performances set standards of artistry and aristocracy of dance which mark her as the finest ballerina of her generation.” She has also won awards as an... |
ballet | Russia | 1970 | Defected on ballet tour in London, UK; later won a Tony Award Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway... |
| Alexander Elder Alexander Elder Alexander Elder, M.D., is a professional stock trader, living in New York. He is the author of Trading for a Living, Come Into My Trading Room and Entries & Exits, best-selling and well known among traders. First published in 1993, these books have been translated into Czech, Chinese, Dutch,... |
author | Russia | 1974 | Jumped from a Soviet ship off the Ivory Coast on which he was working as a doctor; later traveled to the United States |
| Alexander Godunov Alexander Godunov Alexander Borisovich Godunov was a Russian-American ballet danseur and film actor, whose defection caused a diplomatic incident between the USA and the USSR.-Biography:... |
ballet | Russia | 1979 | Defected on ballet tour in New York in JFK International Airport in New York City; later became an actor, including one of the thieves in Die Hard Die Hard Die Hard is a 1988 American action film and the first in the Die Hard film series. The film was directed by John McTiernan and written by Jeb Stuart and Steven E. de Souza. It is based on a 1979 novel by Roderick Thorp titled Nothing Lasts Forever, itself a sequel to the book The Detective, which... |
| Cornel Chiriac Cornel Chiriac Cornel Chiriac was a Romanian journalist, radio producer, record producer, journalist and jazz drummer.-Early life:... |
journalist | Romania | 1969 | Defected to Austria with fake invitation |
| Vakhtang Jordania Vakhtang Jordania Vakhtang Jordania was a Georgian conductor.-Biography:Born in the Republic of Georgia on Dec. 9, 1943, Maestro Jordania studied piano from the age of five. After graduating from the Tbilisi Conservatory, he studied symphonic and operatic conducting at the Leningrad Conservatory, graduating with... |
conductor | Georgia | 1983 | Defected in a tour with Victoria Mullova via Kuusamo Kuusamo Kuusamo is a town and municipality in Finland. It is located in the Oulu province and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is .... , Finland and Haaparanta Sweden to the United States |
| Viktoria Mullova Viktoria Mullova Viktoria Yurievna Mullova is a Russian violinist. She is best known for her performances and recordings of a number of violin concerti, compositions by J.S. Bach, and her innovative interpretations of popular and jazz compositions by Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, The Beatles, and... |
violinist | Russia | 1983 | Defected in a tour with Vakhtang Jordania Vakhtang Jordania Vakhtang Jordania was a Georgian conductor.-Biography:Born in the Republic of Georgia on Dec. 9, 1943, Maestro Jordania studied piano from the age of five. After graduating from the Tbilisi Conservatory, he studied symphonic and operatic conducting at the Leningrad Conservatory, graduating with... via Kuusamo Kuusamo Kuusamo is a town and municipality in Finland. It is located in the Oulu province and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is .... , Finland and Haaparanta, Sweden to the United States |
| Jan Čep Jan Cep Jan Čep was a Czech writer and translator.He was born in 1902 in the village of Myslechovice , Moravia to a family of peasants. After completing his studies at the Gymnasium in Litovel, from 1922 to 1926 he studied Czech, English and French linguistics at Prague University... |
film maker | Czechoslovakia | 1948 | Defected to France; Poet friend that stayed behind jailed for 13 years for "anti-socialist thinking" |
| Anatoly Kuznetsov Anatoly Kuznetsov Anatoly Vasilievich Kuznetsov was a Russian language Soviet writer who described his experiences in German-occupied Kiev during WWII in his internationally acclaimed novel Babi Yar: A Document in the Form of a Novel... |
author | Ukraine | 1968 | Defected after the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia while doing research in London to the United Kingdom |
| Vladimir Tismăneanu Vladimir Tismaneanu Vladimir Tismăneanu is a Romanian and American political scientist, political analyst, sociologist, and professor at the University of Maryland, College Park... |
political scientist | Romania | 1981 | Defected in Spain on a permitted trip with his mother to visit site of father's battles |
| Mircea Florian | musician | Romania | 1986 | Defected in the United States on permitted visit for a performance |
| Gega Kobakhidze | actor | Georgia | 1983 | Hijacked Aeroflot Flight 6833; tried to defect to Turkey and were caught |
| Vladimir Rezun (Viktor Suvorov Viktor Suvorov Viktor Suvorov is the pen name for Vladimir Bogdanovich Rezun , a former Soviet and now British writer of Russian and Ukrainian descent who writes primarily in Russian, as well as a former Soviet military intelligence spy who defected to the UK... ) |
GRU / author | Russia | 1978 | 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... military intelligence, defecting to Britain while working under UN cover in Switzerland |
| Ioan P. Culianu Ioan P. Culianu Ioan Petru Culianu or Couliano was a Romanian historian of religion, culture, and ideas, a philosopher and political essayist, and a short story writer... |
philosopher | Romania | 1972 | Defected during lectures in Italy; suspected that Securitate Securitate The Securitate was the secret police agency of Communist Romania. Previously, the Romanian secret police was called Siguranţa Statului. Founded on August 30, 1948, with help from the Soviet NKVD, the Securitate was abolished in December 1989, shortly after President Nicolae Ceaușescu was... later assassinated him |
| Petr Beckmann Petr Beckmann Petr Beckmann was a statistician and physicist who became a well-known advocate of libertarianism and nuclear power... |
physicist | Czechoslovakia | 1963 | Defected as visiting professor to University of Colorado University of Colorado at Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder is a public research university located in Boulder, Colorado... in the United States ; Became a proponent of libertarianism and nuclear power |
| Paul Barbă Neagră Paul Barba Neagra Paul Barbă Neagră or Barbăneagră was a Romanian film director and essayist who, starting in 1957, has directed short and medium-length documentaries on topics related to culture and the arts... |
film director | Romania | 1964 | Defected in Tours Tours Tours is a city in central France, the capital of the Indre-et-Loire department.It is located on the lower reaches of the river Loire, between Orléans and the Atlantic coast. Touraine, the region around Tours, is known for its wines, the alleged perfection of its local spoken French, and for the... , France |
| Paul Goma Paul Goma Paul Goma is a Romanian writer, also known for his activities as a dissident and leading opponent of the communist regime before 1989. Forced into exile by the communist authorities, he became a political refugee and currently resides in France as a stateless person... |
writer | Romania | 1977 | Fled to France |
| Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev was a Russian dancer, considered one of the most celebrated ballet dancers of the 20th century. Nureyev's artistic skills explored expressive areas of the dance, providing a new role to the male ballet dancer who once served only as support to the women.In 1961 he... |
ballet | Russia | 1961 | Fearful of 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... arrest after mingling with strangers, he defected on tour in Paris at the Le Bourget Airport Le Bourget Airport Paris – Le Bourget Airport is an airport located in Le Bourget, Bonneuil-en-France, and Dugny, north-northeast of Paris, France. It is now used only for general aviation as well as air shows... |
| Nicholas Poppe | linguist | China | 1943 | Fled with the retreating Germans to Germany, hid from the Soviets after World War II for four years; emigrated to the United States |
| Leonid Kozlov Leonid Kozlov Leonid Kozlov is a former principal dancer of the Bolshoi and New York City Ballet. He is also a choreographer, and the founder of Kozlov Dance International and Youth Dance Festival of New Jersey.-Biography:... |
ballet | Soviet Union | 1979 | Defected with wife Valentina Kozlov during their company's tour in Los Angeles, United States |
| Valentina Kozlova Valentina Kozlova Valentina Kozlova is a Soviet-born Russian American ballerina and founder of Boston International Ballet Competition. In 1979, while on tour as a young Principal Dancer with the Bolshoi Ballet, Kozlova defected to the United States, where she became a Principal Dancer with New York City Ballet and... |
ballet | Soviet Union | 1979 | Defected with husband Leonid Kozlov during their company's tour in Los Angeles, United States |
| Valentin Poénaru Valentin Poénaru Valentin Alexandre Poénaru is a Professor of Mathematics at Université de Paris-Sud. He specializes in low-dimensional topology.Born in Romania, he did his undergraduate studies at the University of Bucharest. In 1962, he was an invited speaker at the International Congress of Mathematicians in... |
mathematician | Romania | 1961 | Defected at conference in Stockholm Stockholm Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area... , Sweden; known for low-dimensional topology Low-dimensional topology In mathematics, low-dimensional topology is the branch of topology that studies manifolds of four or fewer dimensions. Representative topics are the structure theory of 3-manifolds and 4-manifolds, knot theory, and braid groups. It can be regarded as a part of geometric topology.A number of... |
| Vitali Vitaliev Vitali Vitaliev Vitali Vitaliev is a Ukrainian-born journalist and writer who has worked in Russia, England, Scotland, Australia and Ireland.-Biography:... |
author | Ukraine | 1990 | Became a regular on BBC BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff... TV in the United Kingdom |
| Viktor Korchnoi Viktor Korchnoi Viktor Lvovich Korchnoi ; pronounced in the original Russian as "karch NOY"; Ви́ктор Льво́вич Корчно́й, born March 23, 1931 is a professional chess player, author and currently the oldest active grandmaster on the tournament circuit... |
chess | Russia | 1976 | First Soviet Grandmaster to defect; defected in a tournament in Amsterdam Amsterdam Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population... , in the Netherlands |
| Romanas Arlauskas Romanas Arlauskas Romanas Arlauskas was a Lithuanian-born Australian chess master.Arlauskas played at sixth board in an unofficial Chess Olympiad at Munich 1936... |
chess | Lithuania | 1944 | Escaped west with others just before 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... re-invaded; traveled to Australia |
| Fedor Bogatyrchuk Fedor Bogatyrchuk Fedir Parfenovych Bohatyrchuk was a Ukrainian-Canadian International Master of chess, and an... |
chess | Ukraine | 1944 | Escaped during World War II after participating in anti-Stalin organization; defected in Prague Prague Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million... , Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992... |
| Leho Laurine Leho Laurine Leho Laurine was an Estonian chess master.He was Estonian Champion in 1932 , and took 3rd in 1935, behind Paul Keres, and Gunnar Friedemann .... |
chess | Estonia | 1944 | Fled before 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... re-invasion of Estonia; defected to Sweden via Germany |
| Bela Berger Bela Berger Béla Berger was a Hungarian-Australian chess master.He took 5th in the Hungarian Championship at Budapest 1953... |
chess | Hungary | 1956 | Defected during Hungarian Revolution of 1956 to Austria |
| Jerzy Lewi Jerzy Lewi Jerzy Lewi was a Polish chess master.He won five-times Polish Junior championships in 1965–1969. He took 3rd, behind Anatoly Karpov and Andras Adorjan, at Groningen 1967 . In 1968, he tied for 2nd-5th in Łódź . In 1969, he won in Lublin... |
chess | Poland | 1969 | Defected during tournament in Athens Athens Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state... , Greece; traveled to Sweden |
| Géza Füster Géza Füster Géza Füster was a Hungarian-Canadian chess International Master.Born in Budapest, he won his first of many Budapest Championships in 1936. During World War II, he played in several strong tournaments. In 1941, he won the Hungarian Championship... |
chess | Hungarian | 1945 | Defected through East Berlin East Berlin East Berlin was the name given to the eastern part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990. It consisted of the Soviet sector of Berlin that was established in 1945. The American, British and French sectors became West Berlin, a part strongly associated with West Germany but a free city... with friend Pal Benko Pál Benko Pal Benko is a chess grandmaster, author, and composer of endgame studies and chess problems.- Early life :Benko was born in France but was raised in Hungary. He was Hungarian champion by age 20. He emigrated to the United States in 1958, after defecting following the World Student Team... who was caught and jailed three years |
| Igor Vasilyevich Ivanov Igor Vasilyevich Ivanov Igor Vasilyevich Ivanov was a Russian Grandmaster of chess and a concert pianist.- Early life :He was born in 1947 in Leningrad, USSR, and learned chess at age five. He studied music intensively as a youth, specializing in piano, and was very talented... |
chess | Russia | 1980 | Ran from 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... agents when his plane made an emergency stop in Gander Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador Gander is a Canadian town located in the northeastern part of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, approximately south of Gander Bay, south of Twillingate and east of Grand Falls-Windsor... , Canada |
| Sergei Fedorov Sergei Fedorov Sergei Viktorovich Fedorov is a Russian professional ice hockey forward and occasional defenceman... |
hockey | Russia | 1990 | Defected in Seattle, United States during Goodwill Games Goodwill Games The Goodwill Games was an international sports competition, created by Ted Turner in reaction to the political troubles surrounding the Olympic Games of the 1980s... |
| Alexander Mogilny Alexander Mogilny Alexander Gennadevitch Mogilny is a former Russian professional ice hockey player, currently the team consultant of the KHL team Amur Khabarovsk. Mogilny was best known for his lightning quick speed and lethal wrist shot in his early years, which led to his career year of 76 goals in the 1992–93... |
hockey | Russia | 1989 | Defected during the World Championship medal ceremony in the United States |
| Petr Nedvěd Petr Nedved Petr Nedvěd is a Czech Canadian professional ice hockey player who spent 15 seasons in the National Hockey League. He currently plays centre for HC Bílí Tygři Liberec of the Czech Extraliga.- Biography :... |
hockey | Czechoslovakia | 1989 | Defected during a midget hockey tournament in Calgary Calgary Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies... , Canada |
| Jörg Berger Jörg Berger Jörg Berger was a German football manager and player, who last managed Arminia Bielefeld.- Coaching career :... |
football | East Germany | 1979 | Used a match in Yugoslavia Yugoslavia Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century.... to flee to West Germany |
| Miodrag Belodedici Miodrag Belodedici Miodrag Belodedici is a Romanian former football player.Nicknamed The deer due to his elegant tackles, he won the European Cup twice, in 1986 with Steaua Bucureşti and 1991 with Red Star Belgrade, thus becoming the first player to win the trophy with two different clubs... |
football | Romania | 1988 | Defected in Belgrade Belgrade Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe... , Yugoslavia Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,... |
| Martina Navratilova | tennis | Czechoslovakia | 1975 | Defected at the 1975 US Open in the United States |
| Miloš Forman Miloš Forman Jan Tomáš Forman , better known as Miloš Forman , is a Czech-American director, screenwriter, professor, and an emigrant from Czechoslovakia. Two of his films, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Amadeus, are among the most celebrated in the history of film, both gaining him the Academy Award for... |
film director and actor | Czechoslovakia | 1968 | Defected to USA when the USSR and its Warsaw Pact Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe... allies invaded the country to end the Prague Spring Prague Spring The Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II... |
| Tamás Buday Tamás Buday Tamás Buday is a Hungarian sprint canoer who competed from the mid 1970s to the early 1980s. Competing in two Summer Olympics, he won bronze medals in the C-2 500 m and C-2 1000 m events at Montreal in 1976.... |
sprint canoe | Hungary | 1987 | Defected to Canada |
| Alena Vrzáňová | figure skater | Czechoslovakia | 1950 | Defected during 1950 World Championships World Figure Skating Championships The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which elite figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion... in London, UK |
| Mihai Apostal | sprint canoe | Romania | 1989 | - |
| Nadia Comăneci Nadia Comaneci Nadia Elena Comăneci is a Romanian gymnast, winner of three Olympic gold medals at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and the first female gymnast ever to be awarded a perfect score of 10 in an Olympic gymnastic event. She is also the winner of two gold medals at the 1980 Summer... |
gymnast | Romania | 1989 | Defected weeks before the revolution to Austria |
| Mihai Șubă Mihai Suba Mihai Șubă is a Romanian chess Grandmaster. FIDE awarded him the International Master title in 1975 and the International Grandmaster title in 1978. He won the Romanian Chess Championship in 1980, 1981 and 1985. He first came to wide attention in 1982 when he finished second, after Zoltán Ribli,... |
chess | Romania | 1988 | Defected to UK during the 1988 Lloyds Bank Lloyds Bank Lloyds Bank Plc was a British retail bank which operated in England and Wales from 1765 until its merger into Lloyds TSB in 1995; it remains a registered company but is currently dormant. It expanded during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and took over a number of smaller banking companies... chess tournament in London. |
| Zoltán Czibor Zoltán Czibor Zoltán Czibor Suhai , also referred to as Czibor Zoltán, was a Hungarian footballer who played for several Hungarian clubs, including Ferencváros TC and Honvéd, and Hungary before joining CF Barcelona. Czibor played as a left-winger or striker and was notable for having a powerful shot, good... |
football | Hungary | 1956 | Fled to Spain during Hungarian Revolution of 1956 |
| Ágnes Keleti Ágnes Keleti Ágnes Keleti is a retired Hungarian artistic gymnast. The winner of 10 Olympic medals including five gold medals, she is considered to be one of the most successful Jewish Olympic athletes of all time. She was the most successful athlete at the 1956 Summer Olympics.-Career:Keleti is Jewish, and... |
artistic gymnast | Hungary | 1956 | Defected in Melbourne Melbourne Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater... , Australia during 1956 Summer Olympics 1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in Melbourne, Australia, in 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, which could not be held in Australia due to quarantine regulations... |
| Lutz Eigendorf Lutz Eigendorf Lutz Eigendorf was a German football player.-International career:He made his debut for the GDR in an August 1978 match against Bulgaria, immediately scoring his first two goals in a 2–2 draw. He went on to collect six caps, scoring three goals... |
football | East Germany | 1979 | Fled during a match in West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... . He was assassinated by Stasi Stasi The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security (German: Ministerium für Staatssicherheit (MfS), commonly known as the Stasi (abbreviation , literally State Security), was the official state security service of East Germany. The MfS was headquartered... as a traffic accident in 1983. |
| Wladyslaw Kozakiewicz Wladyslaw Kozakiewicz Władysław Kozakiewicz is a Polish pole vault jumper. Kozakiewicz was born to a Polish family in Šalčininkai near Vilnius , in Lithuania.... |
pole vault | Poland | 1984 | Polish sportsman famous for his offending gesture against Moscow audience, defected to West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... |
| Kalinikos Kreanga Kalinikos Kreanga Kalinikos Kreanga is a Greek table tennis player. Born as Călin Creangă, he chose to defect from Communist-ruled Romania at the age of 17 while he was participating in the European Table Tennis Youth Championships in Luxembourg in 1989.Born in Bistriţa, Romania, Kreanga started to play table... |
table tennis | Romania | 1989 | Defected in Luxembourg Luxembourg Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south... during youth table tennis championship |
| András Törő András Töro András Törő is a Hungarian-American sprint canoer who competed from the early 1960s to the mid 1970s. Competing in four Summer Olympics, he won a bronze medal in the C-2 1000 m event at Rome in 1960.... |
flatwater canoe | Hungary | 1964 | Defected in Tokyo, Japan during the 1964 Summer Olympics 1964 Summer Olympics The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. Tokyo had been awarded with the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subsequently passed to Helsinki because of Japan's... |
| Falko Götz Falko Götz Falko Götz is a German former football player and current manager.He is the current manager of Vietnam national football team and Vietnam Under-23..-Career:... |
football | East Germany | 1983 | Fled before a match in Yugoslavia Yugoslavia Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century.... ; traveled to West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... |
| Naim Süleymanoğlu Naim Süleymanoglu Naim Süleymanoğlu , formerly known as Naim Suleimanov , is a Turkish World and Olympic Champion in weightlifting... |
weightlifer | Bulgaria | 1986 | Defected during World Cup final in Melbourne Melbourne Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater... , Australia; traveled to Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... |
| Vladimir Artemov Vladimir Artemov Vladimir Nikolaevich Artemov is a former Russian gymnast, Olympic champion and world champion who competed for the Soviet Union.He was born in Vladimir.... |
gymnast | Russia | 1990 | Defected to the United States |
| Ferenc Puskás Ferenc Puskás Ferenc Puskás was a Hungarian footballer and manager. He scored 84 goals in 85 international matches for Hungary, and 514 goals in 529 matches in the Hungarian and Spanish leagues. He became Olympic champion in 1952 and was a World Cup finalist in 1954... |
football | Hungary | 1956 | Defected during the 1956–57 European Cup in Madrid Madrid Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan... , Spain |
| Sándor Kocsis Sándor Kocsis Sándor Kocsis Péter was a Hungarian footballer who played for Ferencváros TC, Budapest Honvéd, Young Fellows Zürich, FC Barcelona and Hungary. During the 1950s, along with Ferenc Puskás, Zoltán Czibor, József Bozsik and Nándor Hidegkuti, he was a member of the Mighty Magyars... |
football | Hungary | 1956 | Defected during the 1956–57 European Cup in Madrid Madrid Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan... , Spain, and then to Switzerland |
| Jenő Kálmár Jeno Kálmár Jenő Kalmár , also referred to as János Kalmar or Kálmár Jenő, is a former Hungarian footballer and coach. As a player Kalmar played for both MTK Hungária FC and Hungary... |
football | Hungary | 1956 | Defected during the 1956–57 European Cup in Madrid Madrid Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan... , Spain, and then to Switzerland |
| Ludmila Belousova Ludmila Belousova Ludmila Yevgenyevna Belousova is a Russian pair skater who represented the Soviet Union. With her partner Oleg Protopopov, she is a two-time Olympic champion and four-time World champion .- Career :Belousova started skating relatively late, at age 16. She met Protopopov in 1954 and they began... |
figure skater | Russia | 1979 | Defected in Switzerland |
| Vladas Česiūnas Vladas Cesiunas Vladislovas "Vladas" Česiūnas is a Soviet-born Lithuanian sprint canoer who competed in the early 1970s. He won one Olympic medal and six ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships medals during his career... |
sprint canoe | Lithuania | 1979 | Defected in World Championships in the Frankfurt Airport Frankfurt Airport Frankfurt Airport may refer to:Airports of Frankfurt, Germany:*Frankfurt Airport , the largest airport in Germany*Frankfurt Egelsbach Airport, a general aviation airport*Frankfurt-Hahn Airport , a converted U.S... in West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... ; recaptured 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... |
| Norbert Nachtweih Norbert Nachtweih Norbert Nachtweih is a German former professional football defender.He played from 1978 until 1992 as defender and midfielder for Eintracht Frankfurt and Bayern Munich. Afterwards he went to French Ligue 1 side AS Cannes , where he played together with Zinedine Zidane and appeared in 43 games... |
football | East Germany | 1976 | Fled with Jürgen Pahl Jürgen Pahl Jürgen Pahl is a former goalkeeper in football. He fled together with Norbert Nachtweih from a match of the East Germany under-21 team to West Germany and was subsequently banned for a year. He played from 1978 to 1987 in the Bundesliga team Eintracht Frankfurt and won the 1980 UEFA Cup with them... in an under-21 match in Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... ; traveled to West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... |
| Oleg Protopopov Oleg Protopopov Oleg Alekseyevich Protopopov is a Russian pair skater who represented the Soviet Union. With his partner Ludmila Belousova, he is a two-time Olympic champion and four-time World champion .- Career :Protopopov started skating relatively late, at age 15... |
figure skater | Russia | 1979 | Defected with Ludmila Belousova Ludmila Belousova Ludmila Yevgenyevna Belousova is a Russian pair skater who represented the Soviet Union. With her partner Oleg Protopopov, she is a two-time Olympic champion and four-time World champion .- Career :Belousova started skating relatively late, at age 16. She met Protopopov in 1954 and they began... on tour in Switzerland |
| Jürgen Pahl Jürgen Pahl Jürgen Pahl is a former goalkeeper in football. He fled together with Norbert Nachtweih from a match of the East Germany under-21 team to West Germany and was subsequently banned for a year. He played from 1978 to 1987 in the Bundesliga team Eintracht Frankfurt and won the 1980 UEFA Cup with them... |
football | East Germany | 1976 | Fled with Norbert Nachtweih Norbert Nachtweih Norbert Nachtweih is a German former professional football defender.He played from 1978 until 1992 as defender and midfielder for Eintracht Frankfurt and Bayern Munich. Afterwards he went to French Ligue 1 side AS Cannes , where he played together with Zinedine Zidane and appeared in 43 games... in an under-21 match in Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... ; traveled to West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... |
| Gorsha Sur Gorsha Sur Georgi 'Gorsha' Sur is a former ice dancer who represented the United States and the Soviet Union. With Svetlana Liapina for the Soviet Union, he is a two-time World Junior medalist. With Renée Roca for the U.S., he is a two-time U.S... |
ice dancing | Russia | 1990 | Defected to the United States while on tour with a Soviet troupe |
| Ernst Degner Ernst Degner Ernst Degner was a German Grand Prix motorcycle road racer.... |
Motorcycle racer | East Germany | 1961 | Defected after the Berlin Wall Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin... was erected once he knew that his wife and two children had already escaped from East to West Germany in the trunk of a car . Degner defected (with knowledge of the loop scavenging technique developed for MZ) by driving his car from the Swedish GP to Denmark and West Germany. |
| Václav Nedomanský Vaclav Nedomansky Václav Nedomanský Václav Nedomanský Václav Nedomanský (born March 14, 1944 in Hodonín, Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic), is a former hockey forward. He is best known as the first hockey player to defect to North America to play.-Playing in Czechoslovakia:... |
hockey | Czechoslovakia | 1974 | Defected during a vacation in Switzerland |
| Pranas Brazinskas Aeroflot Flight 244 Aeroflot Flight 244 was the scene of the first successful aircraft hijacking in the Soviet Union on 15 October 1970 when the Lithuanian nationalist Pranas Brazinskas and his son Algirdas seized an An-24 domestic passenger plane en route from Batumi, Adjar ASSR, Georgian SSR, to Sukhumi and... |
skyjacking | Lithuania | 1970 | Hijacked Aeroflot Flight 244 Aeroflot Flight 244 Aeroflot Flight 244 was the scene of the first successful aircraft hijacking in the Soviet Union on 15 October 1970 when the Lithuanian nationalist Pranas Brazinskas and his son Algirdas seized an An-24 domestic passenger plane en route from Batumi, Adjar ASSR, Georgian SSR, to Sukhumi and... ; shootout ensued; defected to Trabzon Trabzon Trabzon is a city on the Black Sea coast of north-eastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. Trabzon, located on the historical Silk Road, became a melting pot of religions, languages and culture for centuries and a trade gateway to Iran in the southeast and the Caucasus to the northeast... , Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... |
| Algirdas Brazinskas Aeroflot Flight 244 Aeroflot Flight 244 was the scene of the first successful aircraft hijacking in the Soviet Union on 15 October 1970 when the Lithuanian nationalist Pranas Brazinskas and his son Algirdas seized an An-24 domestic passenger plane en route from Batumi, Adjar ASSR, Georgian SSR, to Sukhumi and... |
skyjacking | Lithuania | 1970 | Hijacked Aeroflot Flight 244 Aeroflot Flight 244 Aeroflot Flight 244 was the scene of the first successful aircraft hijacking in the Soviet Union on 15 October 1970 when the Lithuanian nationalist Pranas Brazinskas and his son Algirdas seized an An-24 domestic passenger plane en route from Batumi, Adjar ASSR, Georgian SSR, to Sukhumi and... ; shootout ensued; defected to Trabzon Trabzon Trabzon is a city on the Black Sea coast of north-eastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. Trabzon, located on the historical Silk Road, became a melting pot of religions, languages and culture for centuries and a trade gateway to Iran in the southeast and the Caucasus to the northeast... , Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... |
| Davit Mikaberidze | skyjacking | Georgia | 1983 | Hijacked Aeroflot Flight 6833; tried to defect to Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... and was caught. He was subsequently tried and executed. |
| Soso Tsereteli | skyjacking | Georgia | 1983 | Hijacked Aeroflot Flight 6833; tried to defect to Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... and was caught .He was subsequently tried and executed. |
| Kakhi Iverieli | skyjacking | Georgia | 1983 | Hijacked Aeroflot Flight 6833; tried to defect to Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... and was caught. He was subsequently tried and executed. |
| Paata Iverieli | skyjacking | Georgia | 1983 | Hijacked Aeroflot Flight 6833; tried to defect to Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... and was caught. He was subsequently tried and executed. |
| Defector | Profession/Prominence | Birthplace | Defection | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kanatjan Alibekov Ken Alibek Colonel Kanatzhan Alibekov — known as Dr. Kenneth Alibek since 1992 — is a former Soviet physician, scientist and biological warfare expert of Kazakh descent. He is a military physician, has PhD in microbiology and ScD in biotechnology... |
bioweapons chief | Kazakhstan | 1992 | Former director of Biopreparat Biopreparat Biopreparat was the Soviet Union's major biological warfare agency from the 1970s on. It was a vast network of secret laboratories, each focused on a different deadly agent... ; defected to United States |
| Stanislav Lunev Stanislav Lunev Stanislav Lunev is a former Soviet military officer, the highest-ranking GRU officer to defect from Russia to the United States.He was born in the family of a Soviet Army officer... |
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... |
Russia | 1992 | Defected to the United States; revealed KGB weapons caches in the west |
| Vasili Mitrokhin Vasili Mitrokhin Vasili Nikitich Mitrokhin was a Major and senior archivist for the Soviet Union's foreign intelligence service, the First Chief Directorate of the KGB, and co-author with Christopher Andrew of The Mitrokhin Archive: The KGB in Europe and the West, a massive account of Soviet intelligence... |
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... |
Russia | 1992 | Defected in Riga Riga Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,... , Latvia Latvia Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden... to British Embassy; Archivist who was shocked by records of Soviet political repression |
See also
- Eastern Bloc emigration and defectionEastern Bloc emigration and defectionEastern Bloc emigration and defection was a point of controversy during the Cold War. After World War II, emigration restrictions were imposed by countries in the Eastern Bloc, which consisted of the Soviet Union and its satellite states in Eastern and Central Europe...
- List of Cold War pilot defections
- List of KGB defectors
- List of Western Bloc defectors