Vladimir Kuzichkin

Kuzichkin worked in the 'N Line' at the residency in Tehran, responsible for overseeing and protecting the activities of the KGB's illegal agents. His time in Iran (1977-1982) coincided with a period of political turmoil for the Soviets in the Middle East, centered around the Iranian Revolution and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. The new Khomeini regime in Iran at first tolerated the Soviets and Iranian leftist groups, but grew increasingly hostile.^[11] In Afghanistan, the Soviet Union supported the ruling Marxist-Leninist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan and its efforts to radically reform the country, which prompted widespread revolt. Soviet leadership and the KGB decided to assassinate and replace PDPA leader Hafizullah Amin with a more moderate option. Against the recommendation of the KGB, Brezhnev initiated a full-scale invasion of Afghanistan in 1979.^[12]

On 1 January 1980, Kuzichkin was present when a group of civilians rushed the Soviet embassy in Tehran, apparently in response to the invasion of Afghanistan.^[13] They were repelled by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, but leadership at the embassy ordered the destruction of all secret documents and equipment.^[14] Foreign embassies were on high-alert after the beginning of the Iran hostage crisis. On 27 April 1980, the anniversary of the Saur Revolution, there was another attack on the Soviet embassy, and this time the assailants were able to penetrate embassy property and cause damage; the assailants were arrested by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and no one was hurt.^[15] The Iran-Iraq war began in September 1980, and gave the Khomeini regime pretense of cracking down on opposition at home.^[11][16] It was under these circumstances that Kuzichkin and the head of the Soviet residence, Leonid Shebarshin, created and hid a secret cache of intelligence; they photographed important documents and hid the undeveloped film in the wall of the residency.^[17]

According to Kuzichkin, in the spring of 1982, he checked the cache and found that the film had disappeared. Assuming he would be blamed for the disappearance, and fearing the repercussions, he fled to the west, escaping Iran via Turkey.^[18] He was the first known officer to defect from Directorate S.^[19]

The veracity of Kuzichkin's account and the details of his defection are unknown.^[11] James Rusbridger, in his review of Kuzichkin's memoir, claimed that Kuzichkin had been working as a double agent for the British since early 1981, feeding MI6 intelligence for a period of 18 months.^[3] Other sources put Kuzichkin's first contact with the British at a later date, in the summer of 1982.^[19][20]

After making it to London, Kuzichkin was debriefed by MI6 and the CIA. The CIA shared details about Soviet agents in Iran with the Khomeini regime, who in turn arrested and executed nearly 200 people.^[21] Most of those arrested or killed were members of the Tudeh Party, with their leadership also arrested and forced to apologize on a televised broadcast. 18 Soviet diplomats were officially expelled from Iran.^[3]

Defectors have always been a volatile commodity, and while some, such as Oleg Lyalin, adjust to their new life, others, such as the KGB officers Vladimir Kuzichkin and Viktor Makarov, found the process challenging. Both developed mental health issues, and Kuzichkin was once discovered stark naked in a motorway service station in Somerset, resulting in his immediate hospitalisation. ^[22]

After the publication of Kuzichkin's memoir, Inside the KGB, Ali Agca claimed that Major Kuzichkin ordered him to kill John Paul II.^[23]

• List of Eastern Bloc defectors
• List of KGB defectors