Russia Rules: Moscow Murders

International Spy Museum

Submitted by Andrea on July 31, 2009 - 1:04pm

Venue Address: 

800 F Street NW

Washington, DC 20004

United States

See map: Google Maps

OPTIONAL VIP Reception: 5:30 – 6:30 pm
Panel presentation: 6:30

“KGB decides what interests KGB.”— Major Pribluda in Gorky Park

When Alexander Litvinenko died of Polonium poisoning in London in November 2006, critics of Putin’s Russia saw the hidden hand of the KGB. Eight years earlier, the former KGB and Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) officer had accused his superiors of ordering him to assassinate Russian tycoon Boris Berezovsky. Business as usual for the KGB and its successor organization? In a country whose historical government tradition is to eliminate spies and dissidents in exile, allegations of state sponsored assassinations abound. Hear the insiders’ views on real and alleged Soviet/Russian assassinations in modern times from two former KGB officers who have first-hand experience in the system: Oleg Kalugin, a retired Major General of the KGB, onetime deputy resident and acting chief of the KGB Residency at the Soviet Embassy in Washington, and author of The First Directorate: My 32 Years in Intelligence and Espionage against the West; and Andrey Rostov, a former senior KGB intelligence officer in the US and Latin America in the late 1980's/early 1990s. They will be joined by Olga Oliker, senior international policy analyst at the RAND Corporation who will illuminate the issue from her perspective as a specialist in security sector reform and Russian foreign policy.

Guests can choose to enhance this unforgettable evening with an exclusive opportunity to mingle with the speakers in a VIP reception that includes Russian hors d’oeuvres and Russian-influenced cocktails prior to the program.

Program plus VIP Reception Tickets: $100 (includes pre-program, exclusive reception with speakers)

Program Only Tickets: $20