The Illegals
Russia's Most Audacious Spies and Their Century-Long Mission to Infiltrate the West
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- 10,99 €
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- 10,99 €
Publisher Description
ONE OF THE ECONOMIST'S BEST BOOKS OF 2025 • The definitive history of Russia’s most secret spy program, from the earliest days of the Soviet Union to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, and a revelatory examination of how that hidden history shaped both Russia and the West.
More than a century ago, the new Bolshevik government began sending Soviet citizens abroad as deep-cover spies, training them to pose as foreign aristocrats, merchants, and students. Over time, this grew into the most ambitious espionage program in history. Many intelligence agencies use undercover operatives, but the KGB was the only one to go to such lengths, spending years training its spies in language and etiquette, and sending them abroad on missions that could last for decades. These spies were known as “illegals.” During the Second World War, illegals were dispatched behind enemy lines to assassinate high-ranking Nazis. Later, in the Cold War, they were sent to assimilate and lie low as sleepers in the West. The greatest among them performed remarkable feats, while many others failed in their missions or cracked under the strain of living a double life.
Drawing on hundreds of hours of interviews, as well as archival research in more than a dozen countries, Shaun Walker brings this history to life in a page-turning tour de force that takes us into the heart of the KGB’s most secretive program. A riveting spy drama peopled with richly drawn characters, The Illegals also uncovers a hidden thread in the story of Russia itself. As Putin extols Soviet achievements and the KGB’s espionage prowess, and Moscow continues to infiltrate illegals across the globe, this timely narrative shines new light on the long arc of the Soviet experiment, its messy aftermath, and its influence on our world at large.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
In this engrossing exposé of the former Soviet Union’s ambitious espionage initiative Directorate S, also known as the Illegals program, journalist Shaun Walker shares incredible tales of assassinations, infiltrations, and treason, all done in service of the Soviet socialist agenda. Walker uses recently released Ukrainian archives, along with firsthand accounts from former operators as well as their families and victims, to give us an in-depth look at everything from the assassination of a Ukrainian nationalist with an exploding box of chocolates to the recruitment and training of spies and double agents like Rudolf Abel, Kim Philby, and Gordon Lonsdale, who did immeasurable damage to the West’s attempts to curtail communism. We were amazed by what we learned, like that Soviet spies assassinated 87 Nazi officials and that these operations could take a severe emotional toll on undercover agents, who often battled depression, anxiety, and guilt. If you think you know everything about Russian clandestine operations from John le Carré novels or The Americans, you’re in for a truly eye-opening read.
