Hauptverwaltung Aufklärung (GDR)
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The Hauptverwaltung Aufklärung (en. General Reconnaissance Administration) of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR) was the foreign intelligence service of the GDR and was under the command of the Ministry of State Security (GDR). After the Ministry was disbanded in 1990 its mode of operation was revealed to the public and the GRA was subjected to broad interest by the public, as well as intensive research, which falls under the duties of the German Federal Ministry (Deutsche Bundesbehörde BStU). The end of the GRA and the discovery of its internal structure, its methods and its employees was an exceptional event, which to date is unique in modern history, after World War II.
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[edit] Duties
[edit] Focus
The primary mandate of the GRA was foreign reconnaissance (espionage), which included political, military, economic and technological intelligence-gathering. Among its other duties were activities against western intelligence agencies (by means of infiltrating their operations), preparing acts of sabotage, as well as the so-called "Active Measures" (distributing false intelligence) in the "Operational Sector Federal Republic of Germany", including West-Berlin.
In the early 1980's, military espionage began to gain significance. The Soviet Union, the SED-led administration of the German Democratic Republic, as well as secretary of national security Erich Mielke expected paramount information in regards to the early discovery of Western war preparations from the GRA, in light of the rising tensions between the two Cold War superpowers.
[edit] Cooperation with the KGB
Optimal conditions allowed the General Reconnaissance Administration to provide its eastern "sister services", especially the KGB, the greatest amount of intelligence flowing out of the Federal Republic of Germany, which was the most significant European NATO member. The KGB was headquartered in Berlin-Karlshorst, the Soviet Union's secret service was located in Potsdam-Babelsberg, and in addition, liaisons were present to each district administration. Successful operations against NATO headquarters in Brussels, as well as some other Western European states, such as Great Britain also contributed to the GRA's significance. In the United States, on the contrary, the GRA was never able to break any ground, as the KGB operated there almost exclusively. (The significant inroads in the GDR's reconnaissance on, for example, the NSA originated from personnel stationed in West Berlin.)
[edit] Recruitment and Training
Initially, the GRA College, disguised as "Zentralschule der Gesellschaft für Sport und Technik Edkar André" ("Edkar André Main College of the Society for Sports and Vocational Training"), was initially headquartered in Belzig. Starting in 1965, it was incrementally absorbed into the "Juristische Hochschule des MfS (JHS)" ("Graduate Law School of the Ministry of State Security"), located in Golm bei Potsdam, initially as a vocational training school. From 1968 on, it was called "Fachrichtung für Aufklärung der JHS" ("College of Reconnaissance of the JHS"), and was later renamed to "Sektion A" ("Section A"). The "Fremdsprachenschule des MfS" ("College of Foreign Languages of the Ministry of National Security"), also referred to as "Educational Department F", was attached to it. In 1988, the GRA College, including the College of Foreign Languages, previously located in Dammsmühle bei Mühlenbeck, moved to Lake Seddin in Gosen near the Berlin city limits, approximately 4.5 miles (3 kilometers) south of the city of Erkner. The backup bunker for the headquarters of the GRA was also located there. [1] In 1989 the college had approximately 300 employees and was headed by Lieutenant Bernd Kaufmann. It worked in close cooperation with "Dept. A XIX", and was structured into three Educational Departments:
- Educational Dept. A: Training for political operatives. Dean: Lieutenant Helmut Eck. 4 courses including Marxist-Leninist training, politics, and history.
- Educational Dept. B: "Special Operations" and methodology of service work. Dean: Lieutenant Horst Klugow. 5 courses, including Operative Psychology, Security and Law, as well as foreign residency training.
- Educational Dept. F: College of Foreign Languages. Dean: Lieutenant Manfred Fröhlich. Responsible for the language training for missions abroad, as well as interpreter-training.
[edit] Personnel
[edit] Full Time
The General Reconnaissance Administration had more than 3,800 full-time employees in 1989. Among them were, according to the agency's directory, approximately 2,400 professional agents and 700 deputies, 700 unofficial employees, and 670 special agents (Offiziere im besonderen Einsatz). In the course of the GRA's self-disestablishment, the number of employees rose at times above 4,200.
In the fall of 1989, seven supervisors had a ranking of "General": highest-ranking associate was manager of the GRA, Werner Großmann, as Lieutenant General. Four of his deputies, as well as Harry Schütt (chief of counter-espionage) and Otto Ledermann (manager of the SED foundation of the GRA) were Major Generals.
The GRA associates regarded themselves to be the elite of the Ministry of State Security. A high degree of personal engagement, flexibility, performance, and primarily absolute loyalty to the SED party was expected of them. Qualified employees of other MNS departments, such as those with secondary educational degrees, knowledge of foreign languages, etc., could, as a reward for "remarkable achievements", be transferred to the GRA as needed, which was akin to a decoration. On the other hand, GRA personnel could, due to inadequate performance or following an investigation, be transferred to other departments of the MNS, practically constituting a demotion.
