State Security Committee of the Republic of Belarus
Summary
The State Security Committee of the Republic of Belarus (KGB RB; Russian: Комитет государственной безопасности Республики Беларусь, КГБ РБ; Belarusian: Камітэт дзяржаўнай бяспекі Рэспублікі Беларусь, КДБ РБ, romanized: Kamitet dziaržaŭnaj biaspieki Respubliki Belarus', KDB RB) is the national intelligence agency of Belarus. Along with its counterparts in Transnistria and South Ossetia,[1] it kept the unreformed name after declaring independence.
State Security Committee of the Republic of Belarus
Комитет государственной безопасности Республики Беларусь
The KGB has command over the Alpha Group as the main counter-terrorist unit, although they can be tasked to help the Militsiya and other law enforcement organizations in anti-crime operations.
In October of that year, the Supreme Soviet mandated by law that the State Security Committee is subordinate to the Supreme Council of Belarus. In order to ensure the security of the new republic, the government provided regulations to the agency in January 1992.[3]
The headquarters of the State Security Committee (Russian: Здание КГБ, Belarusian: Будынак КДБ) is located on Independence Avenue at the corner from Komsomolskaya Street. The building was built between 1945 and 1947 by architects Mikhail Parusnikov and Gennady Badanov.[5] The building was erected in the style of Stalinist Architecture and Neoclassicism. The left wing stretches across Independence Avenue to adjoin the neighboring House of the Minsk Mutual Agricultural Insurance Association.
Structureedit
Main Directorate of Counterintelligence Activities
Main Directorate of Economic Security and Anti-Corruption
Main Directorate for Provision of Operational Search Activities
Several dozens former Chairmen and senior officers of the KGB of Belarus have been included in the sanctions lists of the European Union and the United States, especially following the brutal crackdown of peaceful protests that followed the allegedly falsified presidential elections of 2006 and 2010.[7] Against most of them, the sanctions have been lifted in 2016 following an improvement of Belarus–European Union relations.
On 2 October 2020, the European Union added former Chairman of the KGB Valery Vakulchik, as well as the Deputy Charimen, to its sanctions list.[8] On 6 November, Chairman Ivan Tertel was sanctioned by the EU as well.[9] These people are also subject to the restrictive measures by the United Kingdom,[10] Switzerland,[11] and Canada.[12]
On 21 June 2021, the U.S. Treasury has added the KGB of Belarus and its Chairman Ivan Tertel to its Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List[14] with the following motivation:
The State Security Committee of the Republic of Belarus (Belarusian KGB) has continually pressured and targeted the opposition in the aftermath of the fraudulent 2020 election. The Belarusian KGB has detained, intimidated, and otherwise pressured the opposition, to include Pratasevich. In November 2020, the Belarusian KGB added Pratasevich and another opposition journalist to its list of terrorists. [15]
In 2022, the KGB and Tertel were included in the sanctions lists of the European Union, the United States, Switzerland and Japan, while Ukraine blacklisted only Tertel.[16][17]
Vadim Zaitsev, Chairman of the KGB. According to the decision of the European Union, he is “responsible for transforming the KGB into the main organ of repression of civil society and of the democratic opposition” and for state propaganda accusing the protesters of bringing weapons to their rally.” According to the EU, Zaitsev “personally threatened the lives and health of the wife and child of former presidential candidate, Andrei Sannikov. He is the main initiator of orders for unlawful harassment of democratic opposition, the torture of political opponents and the mistreatment of prisoners.”[19]
Igor Bakhmatov, former Deputy Chairman of the KGB in charge of the staff and the organisation of their tasks, responsible for the repressive work of the KGB against civil society and democratic opposition.[19]
Vasili Dementey, former First deputy Chairman of the KGB (2005–2007); responsible for repressions against civil society and the democratic opposition, in particular after the presidential election of 2006 and in 2007.
Viktor Vegera, First Deputy Chairman of the KGB.
Leonid Dedkov, Deputy Chairman of the KGB.
Nikolai Smolenski, former Deputy Chairman of the KGB.
Nikolai Svorob, former Deputy Chairman of the KGB.
Petr Tretiak, former Deputy Chairman of the KGB and Member of the Commission of the Security Council on radio frequencies.
Ivan Tertel, Deputy Chairman of the KGB, in charge of economic crime and the fight against corruption.
Tortureedit
Colonel Aleksandr Orlov, head of the KGB detention centre in Minsk: according to the EU, he was personally responsible for "cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment of detainees" in the weeks and months after the crackdown on the protests in Minsk on 19 December 2010, on the eve of the 2010 presidential election. He has been on EU sanctions list between 2011 and 2016.[19]
Lieutenant Colonel Pavel Traulko, former operative of the military counter-intelligence of the KGB, then head of the press service of the newly formed Investigative Committee of Belarus. He is accused of falsifying evidence and using threats in order to extort confessions from opposition activists in the KGB detention centre in Minsk after 19 December 2010. According to the EU, he was directly responsible for the use of “cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment and for denying the right to a fair trial”.[19]
Sector (Board) commandersedit
Viktor Yaruta, Head of the KGB Board on State Communications
Valeri Maslakov, Head of the KGB Board of Intelligence
Sergei Shugaev, Head of the KGB Counter-Intelligence Division and former Deputy Head of the KGB Counter-Intelligence Board
Ivan Sanko, Major, senior investigator of the KGB
Aleksandr Tolstashov, Head of the KGB Board on Protection of the Constitutional Order and Fight Against Terrorism
Igor Voropaev, former Head of the KGB Board on State Communications
Sergei Volkov, former Head of the KGB Board of Intelligence
Alexey Zakharov, former Head of Military Counter-intelligence Board of the KGB
Regional commandersedit
In 2011, commanders of the KGB in the regions of Belarus were accused by the EU of being responsible for political repressions in their regions:[19]
Igor Kuznetsov, former Head of the KGB in the Minsk Region and in Minsk city
Ivan Leskovski, Head of the KGB for Homel and former Deputy Head of the KGB for Homel
Igor Sergeenko, Head of the KGB of the City District of Mahiliou
International activityedit
On 1 December 2021, US-based Meta announced that 41 fake accounts on Facebook and 4 on Instagram belonging to Belarusian KGB were removed. The accounts criticised the actions of Poland during Belarus–European Union border crisis in English, Polish and Kurdish, while pretending to be journalists and activists.[20]
On 10 April 2022, Meta reported that Internet accounts linked to KGB on the first day of Russian invasion of Ukraine tried to spread fake news about the surrender of Ukrainian army and flight of Ukrainian authorities.[21]
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^"История органов госбезопасности". Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2019-05-31.
^"Belarusian KGB's new chief is Valery Vakulchik". DiploNews. 20 November 2012. Archived from the original on 19 December 2012. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
^С. В. Марцелеў (гал. рэд) (1988), Збор помнікаў гісторыі і культуры Беларусі. Мінск, Vyd-va "Belaruskai︠a︡ savetskai︠a︡ ėntsyklapedyi︠a︡" imi︠a︡ Petrusi︠a︡ Broŭki, ISBN 5-85700-006-8
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^Поўны спіс 208 беларускіх чыноўнікаў, якім забаронены ўезд у ЕС Archived 2017-10-22 at the Wayback Machine - Nasha Niva, 11.10.2011
^"Council implementing regulation (EU) 2020/1387 of 2 October 2020 implementing Article 8a(1) of Regulation (EC) No 765/2006 concerning restrictive measures in respect of Belarus". EUR-Lex. 2020-10-02. Archived from the original on 2021-09-18. Retrieved 2020-12-24.
^"EUR-Lex - 02012D0642-20210621 - EN - EUR-Lex". EUR-Lex. Archived from the original on 2021-07-21. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
^"Consolidated List of Financial Sanctions Targets in the UK" (PDF). Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation HM Treasury. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-08-12. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
^"Searching for subjects of sanctions". Archived from the original on 2021-09-09. Retrieved 2021-09-19.
^"Belarus sanctions". Global Affairs Canada. 2020-11-06. Archived from the original on 2021-09-02. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
^"Belarus Designations; Iraq-related Designations Removals". Archived from the original on 2021-06-14. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
^Belarus Designations; Issuance of Belarus General License 3 and related Frequently Asked Questions Archived 2021-06-21 at the Wayback Machine - U.S. Department of Treasury, 06/21/2021
^Treasury and International Partners Condemn Ongoing Human Rights Abuses and Erosion of Democracy in Belarus Archived 2021-06-21 at the Wayback Machine - U.S. Department of Treasury, 06/21/2021
^"Sanctions List Search". sanctionssearch.ofac.treas.gov. Archived from the original on 16 November 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
^ abcdefg"EUR-Lex - 32012D0642 - EN - EUR-Lex". eur-lex.europa.eu. Archived from the original on 13 June 2021. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
^"Facebook says Belarusian KGB used fake accounts to stoke border crisis". CNN. 2021-12-01. Retrieved 2021-12-02.
^"META: КГБ Беларуси распространял фейки про капитуляцию Украины на польском и английском языках". reform.by (in Russian). 2022-04-10. Retrieved 2022-04-10.
External linksedit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to State Security Committee of the Republic of Belarus.
Official site of the State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus (in English)