Excerpts from Spetsnaz by Viktor Suvorov

[link to militera.lib.ru]


A spetsnaz officer out to recruit agents for direct terrorist action has a wonderful base for his work in the West. There are a tremendous number of people who are discontented and ready to protest against absolutely anything. And while millions protest peacefully, some individuals will resort to any means to make their protest. The spetsnaz officer has only to find the malcontent who is ready to go to extremes.

A man who protests against the presence of American troops in Europe and sprays slogans on walls is an interesting subject. If he not only paints slogans but is also prepared to fire at an American general, should he be given the submachine gun or an RPG-7 grenade launcher to do the job, he is an exceptionally interesting person. His goals tally perfectly with those of the senior officers of the GRU.


...a group of animal rights activists in the UK injected bars of chocolate with poison. If spetsnaz were able to contact that group, and there is every chance it might, it would be extremely keen (without, of course, mentioning its name) to suggest to them a number of even more effective ways of protesting. Activists, radicals, peace campaigners, green party members: as far as the leaders of the GRU are concerned, these are like ripe watermelons, green on the outside, but red on the inside -- and mouth-watering.

So there is a good base for recruiting. There are enough discontented people in the West who are ready not only to kill others but also to sacrifice their own lives for the sake of their own particular ideals which spetsnaz may exploit. The spetsnaz officer has only to find and take advantage of the malcontent who is ready to go to extremes.

Soviet military intelligence controls an enormous number of secret agents, who, in this context, are foreigners who have been recruited by the Soviet intelligence services and who carry out tasks for those services.