Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti

In this episode, we explore the Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti, better known as the KGB, and its role as the Soviet Union’s powerful state security agency from 1954 to 1991. We trace its roots from earlier organizations such as the Cheka and NKVD, examine its responsibilities in foreign intelligence, counter-intelligence, and the suppression of domestic dissent, and look at how its operations shaped Cold War politics at home and abroad. The episode also highlights the KGB’s global espionage activities, interventions across the Soviet Bloc, militarized structure, role in regional conflicts, and eventual dissolution after the 1991 coup attempt, along with the legacy carried on by successor agencies such as the FSB and SVR.