SOVIET ARMY DEFECTION IN GERMANY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00047R000200270008-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 1, 2013
• Sequence Number: 8
• Publication Date: December 26, 1952
• Content Type: REPORT

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/05/28: CIA-RDP82-00047R000200270008-1
CLASSIFICATION SECRET/SKURITY INFORUAT-WN
agr
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY REPORT
INFORMATION REPORT
COUNTRY
SUBJECT
PLACE
50X1 ACQUIRED
DATE
ACQUIRED BY SOURCE
DATE OF INFORMATION
USSR/Germany (Soviet zone)
Soviet Army Defection in Germany
THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS INFORMATION AFFECTING THE NATIONAL OgrENSE
OF THE UNITED STATES, WITHIN THE MEANING Or TITLE IN, SECTIONS 793
AND 709, OF THE U.S. CODE, AS AMENDED. ITS TRANSMISSION OR REVE.
LOTION Dr ITS CONTENTS TO OR RECEIPT SY AN UNAUTHORIZED PERSON IS
PROHISITED ST LAW, THE REPRODUCTION OP THIS FORM IS PROHIMITED.
CD NO.
DATE DISTR. a Deo 1952
NO OF PAGES 3
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SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
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he majorityeaet be reac404. !One hae to eenxidee two mAjOr
PPYOPTogicel DIAO; AgatroPt lefectien in the mind of the 3eviet soldier, The
riret onA 14 the reluctance of aily hOnorabla mart to plaoe Ka family at home in
danger, FamilY bonds are very elfeee in ale 501Viet'UniOn? Tt lea Pirt of VIII State
0040 that relatives meat pay rOr ?rime ef treallQA by 4 Ocviet eeldier, The Ise
eond mailer barrier to deeertion is 3oviet legeliem,' Individuale have a great rem
Ord for law, Eanh man has teken the edlitary Cat, 13104145g WAIN/elf' t7-.' serve the
itate end defend it with, his life. In tee Lenin, Room of each enite th107 oath tit
framed on the wall, With it is displayed a framed set of abstract' ef the auto
Oode, nroelaiming treaeon the meet hel,r044 of erinew Lo be erpiatO, y oxtme
penalties, After each defeetior, order's are read oui te the trOOPM at the Cc-
Merle Hour after breakfast stating the ntreumstances and amounning that the
individual wam eaught by the Seviets' or reoognised as an undeeireble 'te the West,.
ern Power a and herded back, It iu furthor annoUneed that the man has been shot,
A variation on this theme emeurred when tfloo menetddressed my unit, Cal was a
Meter sergeant and one a sergeent first-.class, They elaimed to have leeerted to
the West' beeeme disillusioned' and given themselves up, Aware of the enormity of
their offences' they. atated, they were oteirely willing to aecept the heavy punish*
A4At w44oll was their due, They might have been staging this eonfenrioa as an act"
but it made a big impression on the troope, Beeides these two majur obstacles to
defeotion, there are lesser reasonac acviet soldiers do not know what life is
14e 141 the West, They do not know how they would be treated, The cemeletive
effeet of Hate America and other politieal indoctrination is to make the soldier
suapioious and wary, Alsos leOUrity MFVU/183 against defection ere letensive and
the prestige of the security police ia strong,
ay the use of radio to the offizera, To the eoldlees, leaflets and newspaperm
distributed by t4e,german population and po2'in.4.9101.1bY WOM4A agents are the best
Me4aAa At the present time pest 4oveet lefection is brought about threueh German '
women who obtain eivilian clothing for defeetore and make arrangement for travel,
shelter and. food,
MASSIF
AVON '7711u,Luautui)nac1miti_mig
DIOTRIBUTION
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/05/28: CIA-RDP82-00047R000200270008-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/05/28: CIA-RDP82-00047R000200270008-1
SECRET/SECURITY INFORMATION 50X1
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Themes should be developed to reach the growing number of Soviet men who were
taken froM their parents at an early age and grew up without family ties in an
orphanage. While this element is materialistic to the point of criminality and
would be of dubious value to the West, it does not have the same ties to the Soviet
Union as an average cross-section of the Army.
those who have had good
standing in their units, and MVO reaonea tag p should write leaflets in the
form of letters addressed to their comrades by name. These letters should tell of
conditions and treatment. They should make such direct comparisons as "The Sunday
of a Soldier: USA and USSR" pointing out why the Soviet soldier is under such
tight controls,
Means of transMitting printed matter to the soldier include the following: (1)
maneuver areas, in which Germane are used airoarettkers, laborers, oto; (2) bar-
racks, where latrines are some distance away, and are available to some Germans;
leaflets could be spindled as toilet paper; (3) open training areas could be sown,
sparsely, with leaflets weighted down with sticks and stones, or stuck on twigs in
wooded areas; (4) laundry, coal, firewood, and food brought in from German civilian
sources could contain propaganda,
50X1 Newspapers exactly resembling Jpecific Soviet Army unit and Army newspapers in
appearance, and delivered to the appropriate units could carry effective messages
d stories
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The lowest echelon with a press is a Division, Regiments use posters', wall news-
papers and typewritten materials. 1-1;lirmy paper was thejtalta 1=40 a daily;
1 paper was a =laza w oh appeared twice a week. I believe that
operated on press equipmett locally procured. Soviet Artily headquarters
do not have mineograph or hectograph machines, In the Spring of 1951 an order
appeared forbidding the Carrying or mailing of Army and Division newspapers out of
the post, Such material, together with all personal correspondence must be kept
out of sight in barracks or quarters. When left unattended, it must be locked up.
These security measures were taken primarily against German civilian personnel,
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TrOOP* may see a loudspeaker unit going op and domn the front from Army level&
they are not told anything much about it. Political offieers are given schooling,
during their regular course of instruction, in countering enemy psychological war-
fare, Examples of actual psychological warfare measures are selected from World
War II, German loudspeaker voiceceste are reproduced, appealing in bad Russian
to Soviet soldiers to come over and enjoy the girls end vodka. The student &impo-
lite learned that the Soviet soldiers merely laughed, in most instances, but that
if they seemed to be listening, the politica officer should secure artillery
fire on the enemy loudspeaker to silence it, or on the immediate front in Order to
drown it out. He should gather the man about him and refute the voioecest, pant-
ing out that the Germans lied, that they had no regard for the Spviet soldier,
and the soldier's duty ley in fighting for his motherland. Leaflets should be
combated by similar explanations to the effected trtops.
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I do not #.14711g. thav are carried out in all cases. Defection is vary bad for Soviet
prestige, I
have supported the regime. If I found that life in the West was so ma-a better,
people in that area would wonder if this were really true, and Soviet stories only
lies. The
whole thing is forgotten. In another inetance41 the
Ukraine, the wife of a Soviet Army captain, stationed in Austria, suddenly lost
touch with him, She sought word from the Army, and finally relief f--le the Govern-
ment. Eventually she was informed officially that he had been killed by the
Banderisti? She never got a penmion. He could have defected, 50X1
I should like to add here a brief discuemion of the factors leading to defection
and the impact of the Western worldI
There were many ups and down' in Soviet policy regarding discipline in /me
army after World War II, with, resulting morale changes among troops and officers.
The period immediately following the end of hostilities in Europe was the law
point in Soviet military discipline, and was followed by the movement toward
extremely tight control over officers and man which is now in effect in the gar-
risons in Germany. The ban on fraternization contributed most toward poor morale
SECRET/SECURITY INFORMATION
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/05/28: CIA-RDP82-00047R000200270008-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/05/28: CIA-RDP82-00047R000200270008-1
SECRET/SECURITY INFORMATION
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though in slightly different ways for officers than for men. The extreme
cloistering of the troops in Germany was a cause of dissatisfaction for the men
but the rigors of the training schedule and the weight of difficult duties left
little time for the expression of resentment. Rather, the effect was a keyed up
state of mind which would be militarily useful to the Soviets should -511ey decide
to initiate hostilities, The mass of enlisted personnel presently in Germany
has poor educational backgrounds as a result of World War II dislocation and this
contributes to the uncritical approach with which they face their present environ-
ment. Among the officers, however, the strict discipline has resulted in the de-
velopment of increasingly devious attempts to beat the game, with the accompany-
ing damage to the officers' moral fiber which such behavior breeds. All of the
above-mentioned factors tend to override any original reluctance to defect 50X1
pushing ethical considerations into the background.
The aspects of Western life which had the greatest impact
50X1 were twofold. Initially it was the profusion o ma eria wea ? an
comfort which impressed me most, but this was followed by the realization of the
importance of my newly found freedom to direct my own life.
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SECRET/SECURITY INFORLATION
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/05/28: CIA-RDP82-00047R000200270008-1