About the project
The representatives of the institutions forming The European Network of Official Authorities in Charge of the Secret-Police Files gathered on the meeting in Berlin in December 2013 agreed to digitalize and to publish jointly online records from the multilateral meetings of the former communist state security services, beginning with records from the multilateral meetings of the lines responsible for “political-ideological subversion” and for foreign intelligence. During the next working meetings (the last one was held in April 2016 in Warsaw) the cooperating members of the agencies involved exchanged the information on relevant resources held in their archives and made arrangements to launch the joint on-line website containing the scans of abovementioned documents. The Institute of the National Remembrance (Poland) has agreed to host the scanned documents on its server.
The former state security services of the Soviet Bloc held a series of multilateral conferences, concerning the matters of interest of the “lines”, i.e. structures dealing with the detailed activities and categorized threats to the Communist rule. During those conferences, the KGB gave it’s inferior partners from the Soviet Bloc services the outline of situation (as seen by Soviet leadership) and the guidelines for future activities. The members of the satellite services delivered information of their own dealings, situation assessment, current threats and “countermeasures”. The main aim of those conferences was to enhance the Soviet-guided multilateral cooperation of secret services.
W. Bagieński, IPN Archives, Cooperation among the security organs of the Eastern Bloc during Cold War period
The security services of Eastern Bloc countries were modeled on Soviet security organs, with their direct involvement. Soviet advisors oversaw their organization and work. These advisors were officers sent from Moscow and were not subject to the jurisdiction of the security agencies they were assigned to. Although their presence was rarely documented, we know they participated in many internal meetings and sometimes took part in taking decisions. Soviet security services not only gained access to information they were interested, but even took control of some agents.
Unfortunately, little information remains about the Soviet control and cooperation between the Eastern Bloc security services during the Stalinist period, so current picture of the situation is incomplete. However, we can say that in the early years, cooperation was limited. It mainly involved neighboring countries that occasionally exchanged information. Sometimes, they handed over individuals arrested for illegally crossing borders or espionage. In 1952 Polish security service started to cooperate with Czechoslovakian and Hungarian in the field of monitoring activity of western radio stations and blocking radio waves reception. In the autumn 1953 they widened collaboration to the Bulgarians and Romanians.
Direct communication between security services wasn’t established for a long time. Only in 1952–1953 Polish security agencies established encrypted radio communication with the security services of the Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Romania, and Soviet Union to improve cooperation. In Poland, the director of the Cipher Bureau personally handled this communication, encrypting and decrypting information for and from the ministry’s leadership. It was agreed that operational information would be exchanged in Russian, and only ministers and deputy ministers overseeing specific departments were authorized to share it.
A turning point in the history of contacts between security services came in January 1955. when Nikita Khrushchev – the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Soviet Union – sent invitations to the leaders of the communist parties of Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, and Romania for a meeting of security agency representatives. East Germany was not invited this time, likely due to strong Soviet influence over its security service, making such a meeting unnecessary. The proposal for a broader meeting was justified by the need to combine efforts to enhance intelligence activities against major Western powers – primarily the USA and the UK – and their allies.
The first meeting took place in March 1955 in Moscow. The Soviets outlined their expectations, including strengthening foreign residenturas, expanding illegal intelligence networks, and using emigrant communities to advance operations in the West. The conference was also an occasion to establish bilateral cooperation between all security services present there. The foundation of this contacts was always the exchange of information and operational data, such as mutual requests about targeted individuals or foreign service operatives. Depending on their needs, cooperation expanded to other issues.
In the following years, multilateral meetings continued. For the whole time the most active contacts were among radio counterintelligence services. They were initiated in September 1955 at a coordination meeting in Prague. After the Moscow meeting, at least two more gatherings of ministers and heads of Eastern Bloc security agencies took place. The first known one occurred during the fortieth anniversary celebrations of the Cheka’s founding in December 1957. Heads of various services, including a delegation from China, attended the event in Moscow.
Highly significant was the Conference of Representatives of Socialist Countries’ Security Agencies in May 1960 in Prague. Eleven delegations participated in this meeting, representing Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Mongolia, North Korea, Poland, Romania, Vietnam, and Soviet Union. This time China, despite being invited, showed no interest in attending.
In the Sixties, there were only a few multilateral consultations, and they were held in smaller groups. For example, some meetings focused on combating the Catholic Church, with representatives from the security agencies of Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, and Soviet Union. From the second half of the Fifties, bilateral meetings became more frequent and, in some cases, regular. The most important decisions were made during meetings at ministerial level. Initially, these involved heads of ministries, intelligence, and counterintelligence representatives, and later other units as well. Directors of main operational departments usually attended these consultations, using them to discuss relevant topics and coordinate operational matters. Meetings with ministers and heads of security services were also used to sign cooperation agreements between security agencies. For instance, Poland’s Ministry of Internal Affairs signed agreements with the KGB in 1957, with Czechoslovakia’s StB and, East Germany’s Stasi in 1958, and with ministries of Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania in 1960.
Further contacts between security services varied in intensity. They depended on the current needs, capabilities, and willingness to cooperate. Their character and atmosphere also depended on the current state of bilateral relations between the countries. After political tensions arose between Albania and the Soviet Union in the early Sixties, Albania withdrew from bloc cooperation, cutting off communication and information exchange. Some Eastern Bloc countries, like Czechoslovakia, tried to develop ties with the security services of China, North Korea, Mongolia, and Vietnam. For some time, the Czechoslovak intelligence service sent them information, but receiving nothing in return, it ceased further contact in 1961.
As contacts between services expanded, agencies created units to coordinate international cooperation. They managed correspondence, information exchange, and protocol matters. Their structure varied – some, like East Germany’s Stasi Department X, were independent units, while others were part of the Minister of Interiors Office. Sometimes intelligence services had their own cooperation units. In Poland, this was part of the First Department’s Information and Analysis Branch.
Significant changes in cooperation with ‘fraternal’ services followed the Prague Spring and the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. The Brezhnev Doctrine, adopted by the Soviet Union in 1968, stated that Eastern Bloc countries had limited sovereignty in favor of the collective interests of the bloc. Following this, the KGB leadership, led by Yuri Andropov, pushed for intensified cooperation between security agencies in the Soviet sphere of influence in the late Sixties and early Seventies. This meant creating new channels for both bilateral and multilateral contacts. The resulting synergy aimed to increase the effectiveness of their actions, expanding the operational and informational potential of Soviet and Eastern Bloc services. At the same time, it allowed Moscow better coordination of their activities, while creating an illusion of collective decision-making. Strengthening alliances through mutual interactions among representatives was also important matter. The cooperation model developed in the early Seventies functioned until 1990.
Starting in 1970, multilateral meetings of security services representatives were organized on a larger scale. These primarily included meetings of intelligence service heads from socialist countries. In addition to officers from Central and Eastern Europe, some of them included representatives from Cuba, Mongolia, and Vietnam. There were also meetings of counterintelligence heads, symposia on political-ideological subversion, and conferences on combating the Catholic Church and operational protecting of the economy. In the Eighties, there was a meeting about counterterrorism, and two multilateral conferences focused on the SOUD registration system.
The Seventies were a period when contacts between various units of security services at lower levels were most active. For intelligence services, multilateral meetings were held for heads of information departments, scientific-technical intelligence chiefs, and units dealing with disinformation, active measures, and foreign counterintelligence. These meetings focused on exchanging experiences and information, but some discussions also covered joint operations or specific areas of cooperation.
Changes introduced in the early Seventies strengthened bilateral cooperation between Eastern Bloc security agencies. Besides department heads, ministers or their deputies sometimes participated. During this period, allied services began signing new agreements with foreign partners, replacing older ones. Additionally, individual departments, and even specialized units, developed periodic work plans, typically for four-year periods.
The communist community of security services grew. As relations with non-European countries’ ministries and security agencies developed, agreements were also signed with them. For Poland, these included agreements with Cuba in 1979, with Mongolia and, Nicaragua in 1986, and with North Korea, and Vietnam in 1987. Some countries, like Ethiopia, Iraq, and Yemen, established general working contacts, but these didn’t lead to formalized relations or closer cooperation. Other Eastern Bloc services, such as East Germany’s Stasi, built ties with countries like Angola and Mozambique.
It’s important to mention that relations with Romania also evolved. In the Fifties and early Sixties, they were generally good. They weakened for a few years but became active again between 1969 and 1972. Later, as a result of a top-down decision by the Romanian authorities, they completely ceased to exist and both Soviet and other Eastern Bloc services treated Romania with distrust. No contacts were maintained with Yugoslavia’s operational security units either.
Since the mid-Fifties, based on agreements with allied security agencies, Eastern Bloc services established their own operational groups in partner countries. Their responsibilities varied depending on the location and needs. They usually focused on maintaining contact with local security services and counterintelligence protection of their own citizens present in these countries. This changed in the early Seventies when, under agreements with foreign partners, Eastern Bloc services began setting up official representations. Typically, ‘fraternal’ service representations were much smaller than Soviet ones. They were typically staffed by counterintelligence officers, less often by intelligence or other units’ personnel. Most of them operated under diplomatic cover, allowing them to use their embassies’ communication channels. These officers were authorized to keep working contacts, relay correspondence, and ensure smoother consultations, information exchanges, and delegation visits.
There is no doubt that many of liaison officers monitored political events in the countries where they were stationed. Besides official data, they also collected information unofficially. Due to top-down regulations, they were prohibited from conducting offensive operations, such as recruiting agents between Eastern Bloc countries citizens. However, they built semi-official contact networks and sometimes used their contacts as covert informants. In order to limit uncontrolled contact with their own employees, the services of some countries decided that such contact should only take place with designated officers from international cooperation units. It was hard to enforce these rules. Officers accredited in individual countries sought to build up a network of contacts among high-ranking local officials and officers in order to gain access to unofficial and confidential information. Some also conducted counterintelligence operations and sought contacts with diplomatic corps members from East and West to gather useful information.
Contacts between Eastern Bloc security agencies began to fade in late 1989. The last known joint meeting of security agencies representatives took place in Budapest in October 1989, involving heads of foreign counterintelligence branches of intelligence services. As it became clear that deep political changes in Eastern Bloc countries were imminent, nearly all planned meetings were canceled. A clear sign of the change was that in December 1989, the KGB began reducing its staff in representations in ‘fraternal’ services. Between December 1989 and March 1990, contacts between Eastern Bloc agencies almost entirely ceased, marking the definitive end of the communist security services international network.