General Background

Aleksandr Korzhakov was dismissed by President Boris Yeltsin as head of the Presidential Security Service (PSB) in June 1996 (ITAR-TASS 20 June 1996 (a); Austin American-Statesman 21 June 1996).

An undated Transition article, but written after he was dismissed, provides some information on his background:

Korzhakov, the most controversial of Yeltsin's associates, was frequently accused of meddling in governmental affairs. As head of the Presidential Security Service, he gained particular notoriety in December 1994 when a letter he sent to Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin on oil export quotas was leaked to the press. The same month he organized an armed raid on the Moscow headquarters of Most Bank, which is headed by Vladimir Gusinskii. Former Procurator-General Aleksei Kazannik was once quoted as saying: "Korzhakov decides everything in the Kremlin."

The 46-year-old Korzhakov spent 19 years in the KGB's Ninth Directorate, which was responsible for the security of state officials. He became Yeltsin's bodyguard in 1985 and stuck with him through thick and thin, even driving Yeltsin around in his own car when his boss lost the right to a government one. When Yeltsin became chairman of the Russian Supreme Soviet in 1990, Korzhakov was appointed head of his security department. In 1991, when Yeltsin became president of the Russian Federation, Korzhakov took over the new Presidential Security Service, with a staff of about 1,500. Korzhakov's powers continued to grow: in July 1995 he gained jurisdiction over the Main Protection Administration, whose 10,000 workers guard government buildings. As recently as April 1996 he was promoted to the status of a federal minister. After his sacking, Korzhakov pledged continued loyalty to Yeltsin. As he voted on 3 July, he told journalists he had not been offered a new post.

A 5 January 1995 article from The New York Times and written prior to Yeltsin's dismissal of Korzhakov on 20 June 1996, states the following about their relationship:

Tennis partner, drinking companion, political hatchet man, Mr. Korzhakov, 44, is increasingly perceived by some Russians to have the kind of access and bent for power that characterized the role of Rasputin, the zealous monk who haunted the court of the last Czar. ...

In a divided and fractious Kremlin, the security chief has unrivaled access to Mr. Yeltsin.

"Korzhakov is more powerful than the Prime Minister," said Pavel Voshchanov, a former Yeltsin press secretary who said he quit his job two years ago partly because of Mr. Korzhakov's interference in the office of public affairs. ...

Mr. Voshchanov painted the President's relationship with his bodyguard as a codependency. As Mr. Voshchanov put it, "Korzhakov serves the President, but he has enough information to ruin him."

Yet even Mr. Korzhakov's harshest critics say he seems devoted to the President. Mr. Yeltsin has described Mr. Korzhakov as the most loyal friend in his life. When Mr. Yeltsin was dismissed from the Communist Party Politburo in 1988 and went into political exile, Mr. Korzhakov lost his K.G.B. job and volunteered to stay on with Mr. Yeltsin without pay.

"To this day, he never leaves my side, and we even sit up at night during trips together," Mr. Yeltsin wrote in his recently published autobiography. "While outwardly he seems very simple, behind this simplicity is a sharp mind and an excellent and clear head." ...

Mr. Yeltsin also credited Mr. Korzhakov with devising the plan to storm the Russian Parliament building after legislators led an armed insurrection against Mr. Yeltsin's Government in October 1993.

Soon after that incident, Mr. Korzhakov's presidential security unit, once subordinate to the national security service, was made independent. Now, Mr. Korzhakov is said to lead a force of more than 4,000 men - three times the greatest number of security officers assigned to the country's leaders under Communism. ...

Mr. Korzhakov has considerable might, but his greatest asset may be his command of top-secret information. Yevgeniya Albats, a reporter who just published a major book on the K.G.B., said Mr. Korzhakov saw everything that flowed in and out of Mr. Yeltsin's office and could monitor even his most private phone conversations.

In an article about the Presidential Security Service (PSB), the Federation of American Scientists writes the following about Korzhakov's involvement with it:

Over time the PSB evolved from a government organization into one which was loyal only to its own commander, serving Korzhakov's personal political interests. Korzhakov had been Yeltsin's bodyguard since 1987, and in August 1991, he stood next to his boss on top of a tank during Yeltsin's historic speech.

Korzhakov was frequently accused of meddling in governmental affairs, as the Service gathered evidence on high government officials engaged in corruption, bribe-taking, and squandering money. ...

1996 began with skepticism that President Boris Yeltsin would allow elections to take place, and on 05 May 1996 Korzhakov explicitly called for postponing the elections [see also ITAR-TASS 20 June 1996; Transition 26 July 1996]. But Yeltsin finished first in the 16 June 1996 initial round of the Presidential elections with about 35% of the vote, and was scheduled to compete with Zyuganov in the runoff slated for 03 July 1996. On the evening of 19 June 1996 Sergei Lisovsky and Arkady Yevstafyev, who were allegedly carrying a case containing $500,000, were arrested while leaving the White House of Russia. After being questioned for 11 hours by Presidential Security Service, Lisovsky [a wealthy advertising and showbusiness magnate] and Yevstafyev [a close aide to former first deputy prime minister Anatoly Chubais] were released. Tipped off by Chubais, television networks broadcast updates on the unfolding scandal through the night, portraying the arrests as an attempted coup by Korzhakov [see also Austin-American Statesman 21 June 1996; The Christian Science Monitor 21 June 1996; The Toronto Sun 21 June 1996].

Instigated by First Deputy Prime Minister Oleg Soskovets [who supervised the defense industry], Federal Security Service (FSB) director Mikhail Barsukov, and Aleksandr Korzhakov [Barsukov's son is married to Korzhakov's daughter, and Korzhakov reportedly helped his in-law obtain the position of counterintelligence chief], the arrests were apparently part of a plan to discredit Yeltsin's re-election campaign.

However, on 20 June the trio was abruptly fired by Yeltsin at the urging of Chubais. The three were hard-liners opposed to market reform, strong backers of the war in Chechnya, and opposed to holding the presidential election. ... According to one view the firings of Korzhakov, Barsukov, and Soskovets were the result of a battle between factions within the President's inner circle between a group that wanted to take power by force and a group that wanted to win the election "legitimately." Others saw the events in the context of an ongoing struggle between three groups: the former heads of the power ministries, representatives of the energy complex, and representatives from financial circles.

Consequently the PSB no longer exists in the form it had under Alexander Korzhakov. The interference of the PSB in politics ended 20 June 1996 when Korzhakov was dismissed from his post. He was replaced by Anatoli Kuznetsov, a professional without political ambitions or interests, who first became a PSB officer when Ryzhkov was prime minister. Following Korzhakov's replacement, the FSB was incorporated into the Federal Protective Service (FSO) headed by Yuri Krapivin. Under the law of 06 June 1996, the PSS and FSO were two independent organizations (n.d.).

Suggested Grounds for Korzhakov's Dismissal

ITAR-TASS reported Yeltsin's statements on the dismissals:

"With the aim of strengthening and renewing the team I have relieved first deputy chairman of the government Soskovets, head of the Federal Security Service Barsukov and head of the security service of the president Korzhakov. It is necessary to change the staff. I am giving you all the key news," Yeltsin told Tass on Thursday.

"I have been always reproached for Barsukov, Korzhakov, Soskovets. Should the President work for them? The power structures should be replaced. They began to take too much on them and to give too little," Yeltin added, but stressed that "it has never happened that I worked for Korzhakov's suggestions."

Tass learned that the decrees to sack the three officials had not been signed yet. Yeltsin decided to dismiss them after a brief meeting with Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin which took place right after the session of the Security Council on Thursday at which its new chairman Aleksandr Lebed was introduced. After talking to the premier Yeltsin met his leading campaigner Anatoliy Chubays.

Yeltsin said the dismissal of the three officials was not linked to the incident with the detention of his two campaigners Sergey Lisovskiy and Arkadiy Yevstafyev. The President said the incident was "a technical affair." "I do not know the details, but it was a technical affair as the top leaders told me. The entry-exit regime was violated. There was a detention and a check of what they were carrying with them," he said.

Korzhakov, known as the "Grey Cardinal" in the Kremlin because of his close links to the president, shocked the country when he said a month ago that Russian elections should be postponed.

The dismissal of the hard-line officials was a condition set by democratic forces for the support of Yeltsin in the second round (20 June 1996 (a)).

Other sources also speculated that the firings could have been linked to potential coup attempts (Austin American-Statesman 21 June 1996; The Christian Science Monitor 21 June 1996). There were also other reported theories as to the reasons for the dismissals. It was reported that "State Duma Chairman Gennadiy Seleznev told journalists today that, most probably, they were dismissed because they 'encroached on the most sacred thing: the shadow financing of Boris Yeltsin's electoral campaign'" (ITAR-TASS 20 June 1996 (b); FAS n.d.). Transition attributed this statement to "communist spokesmen" (26 July 1996). Soskovets' replacement as first deputy prime minister, Oleg Lobov, suggested the dismissals occurred because of the officials' "unsatisfactory work" (INTERFAX 20 June 1996).

Several sources suggested that the dismissals occurred as a consequence of "infighting" between "liberals" and these "hard-line" officials (ITAR-TASS 20 June 1996 (c); ibid. 20 June 1996 (d); Transition 26 July 1996). While Security Council Chairman Alexander Lebed "denied rumors" that he was actively involved in the dismissals, and that he presumed Yeltsin had been considering the dismissals "for a long time" (INTERFAX 2 July 1996), Transition wrote:

Some had suspected that Lebed would soon find himself at odds with Korzhakov, Barsukov, and Soskovets, who might feel their control over Russia's security forces threatened by the popular ex-general. But nobody expected that these influential hard-liners would be removed so soon after Lebed's arrival. Korzhakov and Barsukov were known to have close personal ties to Yeltsin. Korzhakov, a 19-year KGB veteran, had been Yeltsin's loyal guard and friend through thick and thin since 1985. ...

Yeltsin's first-round victory also weakened the position of Korzhakov, who had been wary of the democratic process and in May had publicly urged Yeltsin to cancel or postpone the elections. The first-round results suggested Yeltsin could stay in power through democratic means and correspondingly diminished the value of the security forces that Korzhakov and Barsukov headed. At the same time, the influence of liberal business figures such as Chubais, who had engineered Yeltsin's highly effective electoral campaign, was on the rise.

Lebed's appointment also undermined the position of the "hard-liners." As Security Council secretary, Lebed would be in a position to launch an anti-corruption purge that could directly challenge Korzhakov, Barsukov, Soskovets, and their coteries. Thus, Korzhakov et al found themselves outflanked - by their liberal rivals on one side and the looming figure of Lebed on the other (26 July 1996).

Allegations Concerning Corruption

There have been allegations of Korzhakov's involvement in corruption, as well as allegations on his part that corruption is present in senior Russian circles.

In a paper entitled Weapons Proliferation and Organized Crime: The Russian Military and Security Force Dimension, that was researched in the summer of 1995, the author refers to the creation of the state company "Rosvooruzheniye" for the import and export of arms (Turbiville June 1996). He then asks about the diversion of "profits from legal and gray market [arms] sales" and states:

Prominent figures who became associated with Rosvooruzheniye have included ... the notorious former chief of the Security Service of the President (Sluzhba Bezopasnosti Presidenta - SBP), Major General Aleksandr Korzhakov, who was granted responsibility for the company's "observance of state interests." ...

While officials associated with Rosvooruzheniye flourished personally, the return of revenues to the Russian Federation remained limited. Widespread suspicions were raised by the shady business dealing of men like Korzhakov. That is, aside from his dark political and conspiratorial presence in the Kremlin, Korzhakov had interwoven business dealings with his official duties. Aside from his Rosvooruzheniye links, Korzhakov has been tied to the Logovaz financial concern. Logovaz grew out of VAZ, the Soviet state vehicle manufacturer, and among other ventures has attempted to profit from oil export revenues that were to be put back "into hunting lodges and other property." An incident at the end of 1994 illustrates how agendas involving arms sales, financial deals, political rivalries, and personal animosities routinely combine.

On 2 December 1994, Korzhakov directed his SBP bodyguard forces to raid the headquarters of Most. Most, while an authorized bank for Rosvooruzheniye and central to many other business ventures involving senior political officials, also was affiliated with Korzhakov's political rivals. The raid was carried out by some 30 armed and masked SBP personnel as well as elements of the Kremlin's Main Protection Directorate (Glavnoye Upravleniye Okhrany-GUO), then headed by a Korzhakov ally, Lieutenant General Mikhail Barsukov. An effort to halt the search of Most offices by the then-designated FSK chief in Moscow, Yevgeniy Savostyanov (an ally of Most director Vladimir Gusinskiy), was rebuffed by SBP/GUO forces and led shortly thereafter to Savostyanov's dismissal by Yeltsin. Multiple explanations for the raid have been advanced which, according to concerned members of the Association of Russian Banks, is not unprecedented. In any event, the Main Military Procuracy announced in May 1995 that criminal investigations of the incident had been dropped for lack of evidence that any violation of authority had taken place. Clearly, however, the pursuit of personal profit and power are imperatives as strong as any of the purely political motivations or machinations suggested.

Such goings-on by state security and law enforcement organizations render a term like "conflict of interest" wholly inadequate and suggest to Russian critics that state companies like Rosvooruzheniye are largely personal preserves; their profits are parceled out to selected members of the leadership and the leadership's financial and business affiliates (ibid.).

However, a Moskovskiye Novosti report stated that Korzhakov warned Yeltsin about the "criminalization of deliveries of arms and technology abroad" (24-31 Mar. 1996).

A 10 July 1996 INTERFAX report stated that the Russian State Duma, on the initiative of the "Communist faction," was going to ask the Prosecutor General to investigate allegations of "corruption and relations with the mafia" involving Korzhakov and Minister of Sports and Tourism Shamil Tarpishchev.

Other sources also reported on allegations by Boris Fyodorov, ex-president of the National Sport Fund, that Korzhakov had tried to extort US$40 million from him (INTERFAX 15 Oct. 1996; Moskovskiye Novosti 6-13 Oct. 1996). For other information on this please consult ZZZ34256.E of 13 April 2000.

An April 1997 Obshchaya Gazeta column on reforms to the Presidential Security Service included the following allegations about Korzhakov:

As I learned from one high-ranking FSB leader, in the bowels of the Presidential Security Service a plan was devised to discredit officials inconvenient for Korzhakov and Barsukov, by means of collecting compromising materials on these leaders. Up to and including illegally instituting criminal cases against them. Implementing this plan was entrusted to Barsukov. The essence of the idea consisted in the following: The target was determined upon - a department leader unsuitable to Korzhakov and Barsukov. A group of trusted operatives was created. After this, compromising material was actively collected on his subordinates, who were then summoned for conversations at the FSB and were advised to cooperate by giving testimony compromising their boss. If such materials were obtained, then everything after that was simple: These leaders were advised either to voluntarily retire or find themselves under investigation.In the position that was vacated, only leaders who suited Korzhakov were appointed.

If these subordinates proved to be "intractable," they themselves were arrested on the basis of fabricated materials. An especial role in this was assigned to the FSB Investigations Administration, for which Barsukov and Korzhakov had in fact fought for the restoration of the investigative functions in the FSB, although practically all the agencies of justice had been against this (17-23 Apr. 1997).

In December 1999, Russian businessman Boris Berezovsky claimed that Korzhakov and former Federal Security Service (FSB) Director, Mikhail Barsukov, were involved in the March 1995 murder of "ORT channel chief Vladislav Listyev" (INTERFAX 11 Dec. 1999). Previously, in November 1998, Korzhakov indirectly linked Berezovsky to the murders of Listyev and State Duma Deputy Galina Starovoytova, while also claiming that Berezovsky was threatening Yeltsin with the publication of sensitive material if he is "removed from the scene" (ibid. 26 Nov. 1998). However, at the end of October 1999, Korzhakov claimed that in 1995 "Berezovsky was persistently asking him to murder the Moscow mayor and two big Russian businessmen" (INTERFAX 27 Oct. 1999). Korzhakov stated that he would ask for an investigation and that he was releasing the information at this time because of Berezovsky's intention to run for parliament (ibid.).

There are other reports linking Korzhakov to corruption during his time as head of the PSB (Rossiyskaya Gazeta 14 Feb. 1998; Moskovskiye Novosti 14-21 Jan. 1996; ibid. 9-16 Nov. 1997).

In addition, there are also other reports of Korzhakov's allegations of corruption in senior Russian circles. On 11 March 1998 Moskovsky Komsomolets published an interview with Korzhakov in which he claimed that Yeltsin was incapable of eliminating corruption and that Yeltsin's "actions are influenced primarily by his family. And that's Family, with a capital 'F,' not his relatives." In a June 1998 interview with Soversehenno Sekretno Korzhakov criticized Yeltsin on several issues and said that he was "sinking ever deeper into dotage" and becoming more senile (19 June 1998). In October 1999 Korzhakov claimed that irregularities were occurring in Yeltsin's personal finances that were being misrepresented to Yeltsin by those around him, including his family and Berezovski (Transitions Online 2 Dec. 1999).

In a prelude to excerpts from a 30 October 1999 interview Transitions Online writes that at the time Boris Yeltsin: From Dawn to Dusk was published:

Korzhakov alleged that business mogul Boris Berezovskii, now deputy secretary of the country's Security Council, offered him $5 million not to publish the book. Korzhakov said Yeltsin himself had ordered the head of the secret police, Nikolai Kovalev, to stop publication. However, the drama soon died down. Korzhakov was elected to parliament and promptly slipped into obscurity. He resurfaced a few weeks ago in an interview with Russian NTV, rehashing the same old stories yet also introducing a new dimension. Korzhakov claims that since his departure from the Kremlin Yeltsin's family has been more exposed to people of dubious intent. He questions the integrity of Yeltsin's personal finances as well as Berezovskii's role (2 Dec. 1999).

At a August 1999 press conference announcing the creation of a new political bloc Korzhakov was reported as:

in no hurry to disclose information connected to recent publications alleging corruption in higher Russian circles. "While the investigation is on one should not go crowing ahead of time. I have a lot of information but I don't want to tell it all now. I have realized that one can talk a lot but will be able to do nothing if one does not have power" (NTV 31 Aug. 1999).

Korzhakov's Election to the Duma

While in June 1996 Korzhakov and Barsukov were reported to have viewed Aleksandr Lebed as "a serious threat [and to have] decided to discredit" him (ITAR-TASS 20 June 1996 (e)), in October 1996 Korzhakov was endorsed by Lebed as a candidate for the Duma seat that Lebed himself had vacated to take on his position as chairman of the Security Council (INTERFAX 13 Oct. 1996; The Independent 19 Oct. 1996; Rossiyskiye Vesti 16 Oct. 1996). Speculating on the reasons for the cooperation between the two, Rossiyskiye Vesti stated that Lebed needed allies and that Korzhakov's experience and connections would be valuable, although "Lebed is undoubtedly taking a risk by taking him into his team. Gen. Korzhakov's reputation is not 100-percent attractive" (ibid.). Korzhakov was elected to the Tula seat in February 1997 with 26.32 per cent of the vote as an independent deputy (ITAR-TASS 10 Feb. 1997; INTERFAX 1 Apr. 1997). In April 1997 the Duma lower house approved him as a member of the Duma's defence committee (ITAR-TASS 2 Apr. 1997).

ITAR-TASS reported that Lebed's endorsement

angered the president who, while announcing Lebed's dismissal, blasted him for his links with Korzhakov. "The threats which Korzhakov publicly made to disclose official information known to him were designed to discredit a number of supreme state officials," Boris Yeltsin's order continues. "By his said actions Lieutenant General Korzhakov committed blatant violations of the duties of a serviceman and ethical standards, and besmirched the honour of a Russian officer" (28 Oct. 1996).

At the end of August 1999, Korzhakov was one of a number of figures involved in the creation of a new election bloc called "Russian House (Russky Dom)" (ITAR-TASS 31 Aug. 1999; NTV 31 Aug. 1999). NTV reported that other figures in the bloc include "Viktor Ilyukhin, the leader of the Movement in Support of the Army, the Defence Industry and Military Science and a member of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation ..." (ibid.), while ITAR-TASS reported the figures as including: Korzhakov, as leader of the Union of Compatriots; Alexander Bazhenov, leader of the Russian People's Movement; Vladimir Osipov, leader of the Christian Revival Union; and Duma deputy Boris Tarasov (ITAR-TASS 31 Aug. 1999). ITAR-TASS wrote that Ilyukhin did not appear at the press conference announcing the bloc's formation, but that he was "declared to be a member" (ibid.). Further:

the new bloc has resolutely denied alliance with KPRF bloc in the forthcoming parliamentary elections, but the possibility of cooperation with KPRF members as not been ruled out. Russia's House seeks to establish the people's patriotic power; in the country; advocate Russian historic traditions in public life, the bloc leaders said.

Quite a few questions were addressed to former presidential aide Alexander Korzhakov, who was asked why had united with the people with whom he had been on the opposite sides of the barricade in 1993. "As the time goes by I came to realize that we have the same ideals" Korzhakov replied (ibid.).

NTV also reported that the bloc included people who opposed each other in 1993 and that Korzhakov acknowledged this but accused Yeltsin of deceiving people that he was "for Russia" (31 Aug. 1999). The bloc also stated that The Russian House bloc will cooperate with the Communists but will not join them (ibid.).

In December 1999 Korzhakov was re-elected to the Duma, (ITAR-TASS 20 Dec. 1999).

Korzhakov's Dismissal From Military Service

In October 1996

President Boris Yeltsin ordered the Federal Security Service to discharge from the military service his former personal security chief and confidant Aleksandr Korzhakov, according to a presidential resolution ...

It explains the reasons for the dismissal by saying that Korzhakov "has made a number of slanderous statements against the President of Russia and his family and disclosed confidential information which became known to him in connection with his official duties."

"The public threats by A.V. Korzhakov to disclose /confidential/ office information available to him are aimed at discrediting a number of top state officials. By the said actions Lieutenant General A.V. Korzhakov has rudely violated the duties of a serviceman, the ethical norms and has stained the honour of the Russian officer," the presidential resolution said [see also INTERFAX 28 Oct. 1996].

The document orders the FSB "to submit documents for the dismissal" of the former head of the presidential security service from the military service and comes into force on the date of signing, October 27.

The dismissal followed a recent Korzhakov's interview to foreign media in which he claimed that the ailing president was not in control of the country and that it was his younger daughter Tatyana who was playing an important role in running state affairs. ...

Korzhakov again appeared in public after he was accused by former ally-turned-foe of an attempt to extort 40 million US dollars from the National Sport Fund. The accusations were voiced by Boris Fedorov, the ex-president of the Fund who was reinstated as a vice-president of the organisation after that. Fedorov, who narrowly survived an assassination bid, made it understood that it was the work of Korzhakov. Korzhakov fired back by saying that he had a lot of discrediting materials concerning top officials which he would disclose "when times comes." (ITAR-TASS 28 Oct. 1996).

In an October 1999 interview Korzhakov stated that while his pension had previously been taken away "they did eventually give me my pay and pension back and even paid up for the year or more that they'd withheld it all" (Transitions Online 2 Dec. 1999).

Boris Yeltsin: From Dawn to Dusk

In August 1997 Korzhakov released his memoirs about the Russian president under the title of Boris Yeltsin: From Dawn to Dusk (Nezavisimaya Gazeta 13 Aug. 1997; Newsweek 25 Aug. 1997; Argumenty i Fakty 28 Aug. 1997; The Washington Post 13 Aug. 1997). The Washington Post described the book as a "drink-and-tell memoir" (ibid.) in which Korzhakov recounted many stories of Boris Yeltsin being drunk and unable to perform his duties (ibid.; Newsweek 25 Aug. 1997; The Irish Times 20 Sept. 1997; The Moscow Times 25 Oct. 1997). The book also contains allegations about other persons around Yeltsin, including Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov and Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin (Newsweek 25 Aug. 1997). Argumenty i Fakty reported that "the Kremlin is seriously alarmed by the scandalous exposures" and that Korzhakov could make further revelations (28 Aug. 1997). Sources also reported that Korzhakov acknowledged that financial gain was an important motive for writing the book and that "they stopped paying his pension and salary on November 5, 1996" (Nezavisimaya Gazeta 13 Aug. 1997; The Washington Post 13 Aug. 1997; Transitions Online 2 Dec. 1999). Korzhakov also stated "that he still has excellent relations with his colleagues and compatriots from his former life, including Soskovets. He maintains ties with the Interior Ministry, the Federal Security Service, and other powerful departments" (Nezavisimaya Gazeta 13 Aug. 1997).

In June 1998 Korzhakov said that he planned to write another book which will be "entirely based on real facts ... [but] will have some fictional material, though the main characters will have their real names" (Soversehenno Sekretno 19 June 1998). No further information on the consequences to Korzhakov for writing Boris Yeltsin: From Dawn to Dusk, could be found in the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

Other Information

On 6 March 2000, INTERFAX reported Korzhakov as calling for the re-creation of the KGB. Korzhakov wrote:

By supporting Vladimir Putin for the country's president, our people are sending an utterly clear message to those in power: it is high time at last for special services to make a fist and strike those who are preventing them from building a normal life. Russia needs its KGB! It is high time to say this without blushing. ...

The first step toward creating a new KGB should be the formation of a coordinating council of special services at the Russian Security Council, directly subordinated to the head of state. This will allow for the structuring of the future KGB and for determining its functions and tasks.

If the coordinating council of special services is created soon, it will be possible to solve the problem of returning illegally withdrawn capital to the country more effectively. The second top priority is fighting terrorism through specific ways and means, excluding the use of major military forces and the deaths of peaceful citizens. The third task is to expose the illegal privatization of strategic property items and veiled attempts to bankrupt plants and mines for the purpose of privatization. Experience has shown that we cannot do without special services for this, either (ibid.).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

References

Argumenty i Fakty. 28 August 1997. "Federal Security Handles the Korzhakov Problem." (Russian Press Digest/NEXIS)

Austin American-Statesman. 21 June 1996. Carol J. Williams. "Chaos Not Far Away in Russia's Outlook." (NEXIS)

The Christian Science Monitor [Boston]. 21 June 1996. Peter Ford and Marshall Ingwerson. "Kremlin Purgse Shifts Power Away From Hard-Liners to Gen. Lebed." (NEXIS)

Federation of American Scientists (FAS), Washington D.C. n.d. "Presidential Security Service (PSB) Prezidentskaya Sluzhba Bezopasnosti." http://www.fas.org/irp/world/russia/psb/ [Accessed 8 May 2000]

The Independent [London]. 19 October 1996. Tony Barber. "Struggle for the Kremlin: Yeltsin's Men Fight to Keep Up Appearances; Is He Still in Charge?" (NEXIS)

INTERFAX [Moscow, in English]. 6 March 2000. "Korzhakov Urges Re-Creation of KGB in Russia." (FBIS-SOV-2000-0306 6 Mar. 2000/WNC)

_____. 11 December 1999. "Berezovskiy Links Korzhakov, Barsukov to Murder." (FBIS-SOV-1999-1211 11 Dec. 1999/WNC)

_____. 27 October 1999. "Korzhakov Says Berezovskiy Wanted People Murdered." (FBIS-SOV-1999-1028 27 Oct. 1999/WNC)

_____. 26 November 1998. "Russia: Korzhakov: Berezovskiy Blackmailing President's Family." (FBIS-SOV-98-330 26 Nov. 1998/WNC)

_____. 1 April 1997. "Russia: Former Security Chief Seeks Membership of Defense Committee." (FBIS-SOV-97-091 1 Apr. 1997/WNC)

_____. 28 October 1996. "Russia: Yeltsin 'Order' to Discharge Korzhakov Reported." (FBIS-SOV-96-209 28 Oct. 1996/WNC)

_____. 15 October 1996. "Russia: Prosecutor General to Investigate Fyodorov Attempted Murder." (FBIS-TDD-96-030-L 15 Oct. 1996/WNC)

_____. 13 October 1996. "Russia: Lebed Meets Korzhakov in Tula." (FBIS-SOV-96-200 13 Oct. 1996/WNC)

_____. 10 July 1996. "Russia: Duma Request Investigation of Article Accusing Officials." (FBIS-SOV-96-133 10 July 1996/WNC)

_____. 2 July 1996. "Russia: Lebed Denies Involvement in Dismissal of Officials." (FBIS-SOV-96-129 2 July 1996/WNC)

_____. 20 June 1996. "Russia: Lobov to Replace Soskovets as First Deputy Premier." (FBIS-SOV-96-121 20 June 1996/WNC)

The Irish Times [Dublin]. 20 September 1997. Seamus Martin. "Yeltsin Tries to Drown Out Mutterings From the Wings." (NEXIS)

ITAR-TASS [Moscow, in Russian]. 20 December 1999. "Yeltsin's Former Bodyguard Elected to Duma." (FBIS-SOV-1999-1220 20 Dec. 1999/WNC)

_____. [Moscow, in English]. 31 August 1999. "Alexander Korzhakov, Viktor Ilyukhin United in New Bloc." (FBIS-SOV-1999-0901 30 Aug. 1999/WNC)

_____. 2 April 1997. "Russia: Duma Places Korzhakov on Defense Committee." (FBIS-SOV-97-092 2 Apr. 1997/WNC)

_____. 10 February 1997. "Russia: Preliminary Results of Tula Election; Korzhakov Leads." (FBIS-SOV-97-027 10 Feb. 1997/WNC)

_____. 28 October 1996. "Russia: Korzhakov Discharged From Military Service for 'Slander'." (FBIS-SOV-96-209 28 Oct. 1996/WNC)

_____. 20 June 1996 (a). "Russia: Yeltsin: Firings Not Connected With Earlier Arrests." (FBIS-SOV-96-120 6 June 1996/WNC)

_____. 20 June 1996 (b). "Russia: Seleznev Sees Financial Reasons Behind Recent Dismissals." (FBIS-SOV-96-120 20 June 1996/WNC)

_____. 20 June 1996 (c). "Russia: Liberal Team Gets Upper Hand in Yeltsin's Entourage." (FBIS-SOV-96-120 20 June 1996/WNC)

_____. [Moscow, in Russian]. 20 June 1996 (d). "Russia: Zyuganov Expresses Hopes for Lebed, Criticizes Chubays" (FBIS-SOV-96-121 20 June 1996/WNC)

_____. 20 June 1996 (e). "Russia: Liberal Team Gets Upper Hand in Yeltsin's Entourage." (FBIS_SOV-96-120 20 June 1996/WNC)

The Moscow Times. 25 October 1997. Christian Lowe. "Venal World Revealed in Kiss-and-Tell." (NEXIS)

Moskovskiye Novosti [Moscow, in Russian]. 9-16 November 1997. "Russia: Berezovskiy's Kremlin Career Assessed." (FBIS-SOV-97-316 12 Nov. 1997/WNC)

_____. 6-13 October 1996. "Russia: Impact of Korzhakov-Federov Press Batttle Discounted." (FBIS-SOV-96-197 13 Oct. 1996/WNC)

_____. 24-31 March 1996. "Russia: Defense Seeks Weapons, Equipment Exports." (FBIS-UMA-96-080-S 24 Apr. 1996/WNC)

_____. 14-21 January 1996. "Russia: Secret BND Ties Linked to Plutonium Heist." (FBIS-SOV-96-029-S 12 Feb. 1996/WNC)

Moskovsky Komsomolets. 10 March 1998. Alexei Syverkin. "Alexandr Korzhakov: There Are No Russians in the Government So Far." (What the Papers Say 11 Mar. 1998/NEXIS)

Newsweek [New York]. 25 August 1997. Susan H. Greenberg and Owen Matthews. "Bodyguard Betrayal." (NEXIS)

The New York Times. 5 January 1995. Alessandra Stanley. "The Man at Yeltsin's Side: Some Russians See a Sinister Role." (NEXIS)

Nezavisimaya Gazeta. 13 August 1997. Svetlana Ilyina, Konstantin Katanian, and Vitali Marsov. "General Korzhakov Has Presented his Memoirs." (What the Papers Say 14 Aug 1997/NEXIS)

NTV [Moscow, in Russian]. 31 August 1999. "Former Bodyguard of Russian President Joins New Election Bloc." (BBC Summary 1 Sept. 1999/NEXIS)

Obshchaya Gazeta [Moscow, in Russian]. 17-23 April 1997. "Russia: New Presidential Security Service Examined." (FBIS-SOV-97-084 23 Apr. 1997/WNC)

Rossiyskaya Gazeta [Moscow, in Russian]. 14 February 1998. "Russia: Machinations in Rosvooruzheniye Detailed." (FBIS-SOV-98-061 2 Mar. 1998/WNC)

Rossiyskiye Vesti [Moscow, in Russian]. 16 October 1996. "Russia: Lebed Lacks Power Base, Needs Korzhakov." (FBIS-SOV-96-201 16 Oct. 1996/WNC)

Sovershenno Sekretno. 19 June 1998. Larisa Kislinskaya. "Alexander Korzhakov: President is Sinking into Dotage." (Russian Press Digest/NEXIS)

The Toronto Sun. 21 June 1996. Matthew Fisher. "Yeltsin Boots Hardline Pals From Kremlin." (NEXIS)

Transition [Prague]. n.d. Penny Morvant. "The Losers in the Security Reshuffle." http://www.tol.cz/publications/transition/features/Feature.V02N15.Sidebar.html [Accessed 8 May 2000]

_____. 26 July 1996. Scott Parrish. "Enter Lebed, Exit the Hard-Liners." http://www.tol.cz/session/highlight?url=/publications/transition/features/feature.v02n15.html&words=lebed+parrish+&color=red [Accessed 8 May 2000]

Transitions Online [Prague]. 2 December 1999. "Russia: Blood Brothers." http://www.ijt.cz/itowa/dec99rus.html [Accessed 8 May 2000]

Turbiville, Graham H. Jr. June 1996. Weapons Proliferation and Organized Crime: The Russian Military and Security Force Dimension. http://www.fas.org/irp/threat/ocp10.htm [Accessed 8 May 2000]

The Washington Post. 13 August 1997. "Ex-Bodyguard for Yeltsin Writes Blistering Book of Leader." http://detroitnews.com [Accessed 8 May 2000]