How vital were Cold War spies, did they actually make any difference?
The world of espionage is at the heart of the mythology of the Cold War. But while the tales of adventure, treason, and mole hunts are a great source for thriller writers, did they really make a difference to the outcome? Did intelligence make the Cold War hotter or colder? It is difficult to know the answer, because much of the intelligence collected was military or tactical in nature, and would only have useful if the Cold War had gone hot. But in the lack of traditional warfare, intelligence becomes itself the primary battleground. (bbc.co.uk)
The spy who started the Cold War by passing Britain`s atomic bomb secrets to the Soviet Union
For 10 years a Soviet spy codenamed Eric revealed Britain's nuclear secrets to Moscow, paving the way for the Cold War. The KGB treasured him; MI5 suspected him, trailed him, opened his letters and monitored his every move. But he was never caught. Now, with the opening of MI5 and KGB archives, Eric can be id'ed as Engelbert (Bertie) Broda, a Austrian scientist who evaded Britain's spy-catchers while working as a Soviet mole in the heart of the wartime nuclear research programme. The amazing story of Bertie Broda is like a spy novel: a tale of espionage and counter-espionage, elaborate spycraft, deception, and double-life. (timesonline.co.uk)
Majority of Eastern Germans say life was better under Communism
Glorification of the German Democratic Republic is increasing two decades after the Berlin Wall collapsed. Young people and the better off are among those rejecting criticism of East Germany. In a new poll over half of former eastern Germans defend the GDR. People are whitewashing the dictatorship, as if criticizing the state meant calling their own past into question. "Many eastern Germans perceive all criticism of the system as a personal attack. Not even half of young people in eastern Germany describe the GDR as a dictatorship, and a majority believe the Stasi was a normal intelligence service," Klaus Schroeder discovered in a 2008 study. (spiegel.de)
Was West German history shaped by East German spy
The name of the literature student Benno Ohnesorg became a rallying cry for the West German left wing after he was shot dead by police in 1967. Newly discovered documents from the Stasi archive suggest that Karl-Heinz Kurras - the cop who shot Ohnesorg - may have been a spy for the Stasi. The papers show that Kurras began working with the Stasi in 1955. He had wanted to move to East Berlin, but instead he signed an agreement with the Stasi to remain with the West Berlin police force and spy for the communist state. As a result of the new information, criminal charges have once again been filed against Kurras (who has already been acquitted two times). (spiegel.de)
Teenager Mathias Rust tested Soviet air defenses on May 28, 1987
The Cold War was still in full force in 1987, when West German teenager Mathias Rust decided he was going to help us all just get along. Not only did he escape a death and fail to start World War III, but his stunt actually smoothed the way for an eventual easing of global tensions. Rust, 19, was determined to prove that the "evil empire" really wasn't all that evil and that Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev was truthful in his desire to end the Cold War. His plan: Violate the most heavily defended airspace in the world, get to Moscow in one piece, and show the world the softer side of the Soviets. (wired.com)
KGB material released online by Cold War project
The Cold War International History Project has released the Vassiliev Notebooks - an important new source of information on Soviet intelligence in the US 1930-1950. Though the KGB's archive remains closed, ex-KGB officer turned journalist Alexander Vassiliev was given the unique chance to spend 2 years browsing over materials from the KGB archive taking notes on some of the KGB's most sensitive files. Though Vassiliev's access was not unchained, the 1115 pages of notes that he was able to take shed new light on such essential topics as Alger Hiss, the Rosenberg case, and 'Enormous,' the massive Soviet effort to gather intelligence on the atomic bomb project. (slashdot.org)
The Great Cold War: A Journey Through the Hall of Mirrors [book review]
The initial turning point in the Cold War came quietly in the 1950s and 1960s. It was then that analysts at the RAND Corporation made what was then a radical but verifiable conclusion: "The West was far stronger than the Soviet Union and its allies - it had more manpower, greater wealth and a huge lead in technology." So, what was needed to exploit these inherent advantages? "A long term strategy that would be more effective than the policy of containment - and the will to implement it." That is the core of Gordon Barrass' "The Great Cold War," a superb account of how analysis reasoned that the Soviet Union, in many ways, was a hollow shell. (washingtontimes.com)
Visitors tour Cold War missile site at Everglades - History Attraction
At the height of the Cold War, anti-aircraft missiles stood at the ready in Florida's swamplands, protecting the South from a Soviet nuclear attack from Cuba. For almost two decades, after the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, the HM-69 Nike Hercules Missile Site was staffed by 100 military personnel, one of the last lines of defense. When it closed in 1979, the park took charge of the site. Now the site is undergoing a rebirth as a history attraction, drawing the tourists who want to see the Cold War relic along with those who stumble upon it while visiting Everglades National Park. (usatoday.com)
Cold War in paradise - British soldiers witnessed early nuclear bombs
Some 50 years ago, thousands of young servicemen landed on the white sands of a Pacific paradise to oversee Britain's testing of early nuclear bombs. But what took place next damaged them for life, some claim, and now they want compensation. Dressed in overalls, gloves and a balaclava, naval cook Dougie Hern was ordered to sit on the beach, back to the bomb, eyes closed and hands over his face. "We saw a bright, brilliant light. It was as if someone had switched a firebar on in your head. It grew brighter and you could see the bones in your hands, like pink X-rays, in front of your closed eyes." Then, they were ordered to stand and turn towards the nuclear blast. (bbc.co.uk)
U.S. pays $100M to Florida Cold War workers with occupation illnesses
The U.S. Department of Labor has paid $100 million in compensation and medical benefits to Florida residents under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act (EEOICPA). The act was created to assist individuals who became ill as a result of working in the atomic weapons industry. Since the act, the Labor Department has paid 48,510 persons $4.5 billion. The EEOICPA covers current or former workers who have been diagnosed with illness caused by exposure to radiation, beryllium or silica while working for the U.S. Department of Energy, their contractors or subcontractors, a designated Atomic Weapons Employer, or a beryllium vendor. (insurancejournal.com)