-Caveat Lector-
Defector Reveals Russian War Plans
by Christopher Ruddy, February 8, 1999
For NewsMax.com and The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
WASHINGTON - Russia cannot threaten the United States. She is poor.
She is weak. She is starving. She is in chaos.
Think again, says Stanislav Lunev.
Col. Lunev is the highest ranking military intelligence officer ever
to have defected from Russia. He did so in 1992 after the Soviet Union
dissolved and Boris Yeltsin had come to power.
At the time of his defection Lunev was living in Washington with his
wife, working a cover job as a journalist for TASS, the Russian news
agency, while doing his real job: spying on America.
As a GRU officer Lunev's spying related to military matters: gathering
information on America's military plans; reporting on U.S.
vulnerabilities; devising special operations in the advent of war.
Last year, Lunev detailed just some of his activities in a new book he
co-authored with Ira Winkler, "Through the Eyes of the Enemy: Russia's
Highest Ranking Military Defector Reveals Why Russia is More Dangerous
than Ever" (Regnery, (800) 639-7629).
The book is a light read with some sensational details about Russian
plans to bring suitcase nuclear bombs into America and to use special
forces to assassinate the president and congressional, military and
other leaders during the initial phases of a war.
Lunev claims in "Through the Eyes of the Enemy" that Russian military
leaders still view a war with the United States as "inevitable" and
that the Cold War never really ended.
Save for some talk radio outlets and the Internet, Lunev's book got
little media coverage. This comes as no surprise since most Americans
believe the United States won the Cold War. Russia is not a threat and
any suggestion that it is has to be written off as just paranoid
jingoism.
Lunev is used to unfriendly receptions. When he did defect, higher-ups
at the CIA and the Pentagon did not accept what he had to say.
What he said was rather simple. Russia is continuing its old ways. The
military is still preparing for war against the United States. A
nuclear war.
In the era of fuzzy warm feelings between the United States and
Russia, American officials were not going to upset the applecart no
matter how much evidence Lunev offered.
In the intervening years, Russia has appeared to further disintegrate.
Can she really be a threat? skeptics ask. Lunev most certainly has
been proven wrong.
Lunev says think again. He retorts that Russia still retains a
formidable military-industrial complex. She is one of the world's
largest arms exporters. She makes quality products and delivers them
on time.
Russia continues to build nuclear submarines, bombers and missiles.
Last year Yeltsin commissioned Peter the Great, the largest ballistic
missile cruiser ever built by mankind. This past Christmas, Russia
deployed a regiment of 10 Topol-M intercontinental ballistic missiles,
missiles reportedly more sophisticated than anything we have. Just
last month, Russia unveiled her stealth bomber. The New York Times
reports Russia continues to build huge underground bunkers, some as
large as cities, in case of war. She also continues to build an
arsenal of chemical and biological weapons. Russia's nuclear arsenal
remains the world's largest. She continues testing of her nuclear
weapons.
Such facts demonstrate that Lunev, who refuses to be photographed for
security reasons, is not to be dismissed.
INTERVIEW
Ruddy: Colonel Lunev, you were first and foremost a spy for Russia who
posed as a journalist. In your book you discuss the help you received
from American journalists. How significant was the Russian penetration
of the American press corps? How many American journalists were
working for Russia?
Lunev: In my book I talk about myself. Keep this in mind, when I
worked in TASS' Washington bureau, I had two colleagues from the KGB
also working as agents.
So we had plenty of people undercover working as journalists. How many
people they recruited? I don't know. But I can tell you that
journalists, American journalists and foreign journalists in this
country, were considered a major target. They were the same level of
target as military, government personnel or Capitol Hill staff.
Ruddy: When you say targets, you mean?
Lunev: Recruits.
Ruddy: It has been acknowledged that the East German government had as
many as 5,000 spies working for it in West Germany.
Lunev: East German intelligence was very successful. Very successful.
I don't know exactly how many people they recruited, but they were
very successful. Not only in penetrations through Western Germany and
the European establishment, but through American institutions located
in Western Europe.
Ruddy: What do you think the degree of penetration is of the U.S.
government by communist or former communist countries in the CIA, the
FBI, and State Department?
Lunev: It could be hundreds. But I don't know the exact number.
Recently the FBI admitted there were a couple of hundred open cases of
espionage they were investigating. These are the ones they know about.
So you can multiply this number by many times to guess the number of
people who are working as spies whom the government does not know
about.
Ruddy: You were not only a spy, but a military intelligence officer.
Your work involved developing military plans and learning of other
countries' plans. What did you study when you were in military schools
in Russia?
Lunev: We had a lot of special subjects we needed to learn, including
military science. We learned basic ways of commanding armies and how
to conduct military operations.
Ruddy: How much of your training and education was geared toward
fighting a nuclear war?
Lunev: All of our educational process and training was connected to
the actual fulfillment of military plans in time of a nuclear war.
Ruddy: Your book suggests that the whole Russian military structure,
the whole society during the Soviet era was geared for a nuclear war,
and that has not changed under the new regime.
Lunev: Yes. The Soviet plan was the use of strategic forces to destroy
strategic targets in America and the West, followed by the use of
nuclear and conventional forces. This was the Soviet way, and the
Russian military still thinks the same way today. They are much more
dangerous now because the Russian military is relying more on their
nuclear weapons.
Ruddy: What about a first strike on the United States?
The likely plan does not include use of missiles first. First the
Russians would use their special operation forces, special troops,
inside of the United States to destroy targets like communications
facilities, airfields, command centers, and other targets that might
be difficult to destroy with a missile attack.
Suitcase nuclear bombs at strategic locations are just one small part
of their arsenal. I mentioned this in my book and I have been so
surprised that the American public is so interested in this. Why? This
is not something unusual for Russian military plans.
Ruddy: One of your jobs here in the U.S. as a spy was to look for
locations to hook up these suitcase nukes to electric power sources.
It's not really necessary to have an electric power source because the
devices can work on a battery. But not for very long.
Ruddy: Are there such bombs in the United States already?
Lunev: It's possible.
Ruddy: How soon could this war come?
Lunev: The Russian conventional forces are not in a state of
readiness. Their rocket and nuclear forces are. This war scenario
could be in place by the request of Russian government in a short
time.
Russia is a country on the edge of social explosion. The total decline
of living conditions: human, industrial, political, social, and now
the financial crisis. This could lead to war.
Ruddy: It's dangerous because the Russians may consider their only
option is to use the "gun." At the same time, the United States has
been destroying its nuclear forces.
Lunev: Yes! I am sorry, but let me ask you, what's going on in this
country? Right now the Russians are engaging in criminal extortion for
money. This is the same method criminals use. Every other day, in
conversations with Western leaders, the Russians are saying "show me
the money or something dangerous will happen in my country with tens
of thousands of nuclear warheads." It's extortion.
There could be an explosion, a catastrophe. It could happen in Russia,
and somebody like a major general or a one-star general or colonel
will come to power without any international experience. If such a
person would come to power, pushing the nuclear button would be no
problem.
Ruddy: If that happened, how long would it take for a strong leader to
get the conventional forces ready if he wanted to start a nuclear war
against the United States?
Lunev: A few months. You have to remember that the Russians have the
same number of submarines, nuclear missile submarines, ships, bombers,
fighters, tanks and the like as they did at the height of Soviet
military power. I know that Russian military downswing was connected
with Army divisions only, and these divisions could be rebuilt in
weeks or months.
Ruddy: China also is moving closer to Russia. China has the largest
conventional army in the world. What danger does that pose?
Lunev: If China and Russia would ally in a war against the United
States, with Russia providing the strategic weapons and China the
troops, they could begin the war tomorrow.
Ruddy: Recent press reports state that the Russians have been helping
the Chinese develop ballistic missile technology.
Lunev: I would say that actually the Chinese missile industry was
created by the Soviet Union, by Soviet specialists, by Soviet
technology and by education of Chinese engineers and scientists in
Soviet institutions. So the Soviet Union, let's say, played the major
role in the establishment of the Chinese missile industry. But this
was in the '50s before the Sino-Russia split. This split was healed in
the late 1980s and any ideological obstacle for helping China was
removed. China, of course, pays big money to Russia for this
technology.
Ruddy: Well, it does seem that some steps the Russians are taking
suggest war preparations. They are building a huge underground complex
in the Ural Mountains. Have you heard about that?
Lunev: You ask about Yamantau Mountain. Well, this is a huge
underground city which could be used in time when many Russian cities
are destroyed, but the military and political elite will survive and
live until our planet will try to restore itself.
Ruddy: The American military is downsizing because there is no Warsaw
Pact. We have let down our defenses. If the Russians were to launch a
first strike, a surprise attack against the United States, they could
wipe us almost off the map. European countries like Britain and France
have small nuclear arsenals. If the U.S. does not exist, Russia rules
the world because after an attack, she will still have a huge nuclear
arsenal.
Lunev: Yes.
Ruddy: Is it possible that the Russian Communists planned this? That
the intelligence agencies and the military establishment said, "Hey,
if we give up Eastern Europe, if we throw open the economy,
democratize, allow the country to seem in chaos, the Americans will
let down their guard. We can get them to reduce their strategic
nuclear forces, and they won't think of us as a threat."
Lunev: I believe there was a plan. I cannot prove it to you. It is my
hunch this is what happened. This is based on my experiences, things I
saw going on. Because now, six years later, it looks like it was
planned, but at that time we didn't have any idea that it was possible
to plan all this activity.
Ruddy: Well, it seems to me the most important information you have is
that the Cold War isn't over: that the Russian military believes
inevitably that there will be a war with the United States.
Lunev: In April of 1998, Russia used its strategic bombers in an
exercise against the United States. These exercises were organized for
the future war against America. Before that there were several nuclear
exercises.
In the fall of 1998, President Yeltsin commissioned Peter the Great,
the world's largest nuclear missile cruiser. They have been doing
ground forces exercises. Airborne force exercises. All of these
exercises are being conducted for a reason, for the future war against
America.
Ruddy: What do you think are the chances, I know this is highly
speculative, that there will be a nuclear global war between Russia
and the United States within the next five years?
Lunev: I need to repeat myself. In a time of social explosion in
Russia, nobody can exclude the possibility that it will begin.
Preparations for this nuclear war are now being made in Russia.
Ruddy: Would the Russian people support such a war?
Lunev: In recent years and times, the feelings of the Russian people
toward America have begun to change. The Russian people believe the
United States is giving money to the corrupt Russian government, which
never helps the ordinary Russians. America has identified herself so
strongly with Yeltsin, and now Yeltsin and his government are viewed
as corrupt.
There is a perception that America, who destroyed the old Soviet
Union, is again trying to destroy Russia.
Ruddy: A former American general, Benjamin Partin, suggested that if,
after the Allies had beaten Hitler in World War II, and the new German
government was filled with ex-Nazis in the Cabinet, ex-Nazis in the
military, ex-Nazis in the private businesses, would we believe we won?
General Partin notes that in today's Russia, ex-Communists, many
high-level Soviet officials, run most of the government and private
businesses. Most of the republics are run by former Communists.
Lunev: Well, almost all, yes. General Partin is correct in his
concerns.
Ruddy: It appears that in 1917 when the Communists came to power in
Russia, they were not much more than organized crime figures.
Lunev: Yes, they are the same. They are together. There is no
difference.
Ruddy: It seems this permanent government will be always seeking
domination, whether official or through organized crime means.
Lunev: And you are right, but how will you sell this idea to America?
Ruddy: You can't sell it to America, because they believe all the bad
guys just gave up with the end of the Cold War. One day it was all
over, we won. End of story.
Lunev: You should know this did not happen in one day, like on
Christmas Day of 1991 when Gorbachev dissolved the Soviet Union. A
long time before this the KGB began to transfer Communist Party money
to private accounts under the names of different people in Western
countries.
At the same time the KGB moved some of their very experienced people,
including generals, sometimes four-star generals, into the new private
businesses being formed in Russia. For example, former KGB agents
joined financial and industrial groups. Since they had intelligence
backgrounds, they could be placed in various positions, like vice
president in charge of personnel or foreign operations.
The KGB established these private accounts, controlled by their own
people using money from the CCCP - the Communist Party assets - for
the future, for the future restoration of communism.
Ruddy: The power of organized crime in Russia developed so quickly.
What role did the KGB play in its rise to power?
Lunev: The KGB and the old-line Communists needed to use criminals in
this phase because who had experience in money laundering? Who has
connections with drug cartels? With other organized crime groups in
Western countries? The KGB worked closely with these groups and
actually provided passports and permission for criminals to travel
abroad.
Organized crime in Russia has existed for a long time, as long as
anyone can remember. Yet the criminals never played any sufficient or
important role in Russian or Soviet society until the so-called
reforms were begun under Gorbachev.
Ruddy: You mentioned earlier that the KGB transferred funds outside of
Russia for the future restoration of the Communist Party.
Lunev: Yes, for the future.
Ruddy: So people are thinking in terms of restoring the Communist
Party there?
Lunev: Yes, I think that they made plans to bring back the Communists.
The Politburo accomplished this at the end of the 1980s and the early
'90s when millions, if not billions, of dollars from Communist Party
accounts were transferred by KGB officers with assistance and help
from criminals.
-------------
"Those who hope that we shall move away from the socialist path will
be greatly disappointed. Every part of our program of perestroika...is
fully based on the principle of more socialism and more democracy."
-Mikhail Gorbachev Perestroika, New Thinking for Our Country and the
World 1988
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