Dmitri Polyakov

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Dmitri Fyodorovich Polyakov (Russian: Дмитрий Фёдорович Поляков)(July 6, 1921 - March 15, 1988) was a Soviet Major General, a high-ranking GRU officer, and a prominent Cold War spy who revealed Soviet secrets to the Central Intelligence Agency. In the CIA he was known by code names BOURBON and ROAM, while the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) knew him as TOPHAT.

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[edit] Early Life

Born in 1921 in Ukraine, he graduated from Sumi Artillery School in June of 1941 and served as an artillery officer in World War II and was decorated for bravery. After the war and his studies at Frunze Military Academy and GRU Training Courses, he joined Soviet Military Intelligence, the GRU. His first mission was with the Soviet delegation to the Military Staff Committee of the United Nations in New York from 1951-1956.

[edit] Agent

On his second assignment there, in 1959-1961, he approached FBI counterintelligence agents to offer his services as an informant. His follow-up overseas assignments include Burma, Rangoon 1965-1969, India, New Delhi 1973-1976 and 1979-1980 where he was posted as Soviet Military Attaché. Some in the CIA feel that Polyakov became a mole because he was disgusted with the corruption of the Soviet Party elite. [1]. Victor Cherkashin suggested that he was embittered because Soviet leadership denied him permission to take his seriously ill son, the eldest of three, to a hospital in New York where he could get adequate medical attention. This son died as a result of the illness and soon after, Polyakov began his informant activities.[2]

For 25 years he remained a CIA Informant as he rose through the ranks, eventually becoming a General. CIA Officers speak in superlatives about the kind of information he provided. Sandy Grimes said of him, "Polyakov was our crown jewel,... the best source at least to my knowledge that American intelligence has ever had and I would submit, although I certainly can't be certain, but the best source that any intelligence service has ever had."[3] James Woolsey said of him, "Polyakov was the jewel in the crown."[1] According to all accounts, he was not interested in money, but was acting purely from principle.

Among the important information Polyakov provided:

  • Evidence of the growing rift between the Soviet Union and China. This information played a crucial role in President Richard Nixon's decision to open diplomatic relations with China in 1972.
  • Technical data on Soviet-made antitank missiles. While the US never fought the Soviet Union directly, knowledge of these weapons proved invaluable when Iraq employed them in the first Gulf War.

[edit] Arrest and Execution

In 1980 Polyakov retired, and, an avid Sportsman, wrote articles for a Soviet hunting magazine. Suddenly, in 1986, all evidence of Polyakov disappeared. His contacts at the CIA had no information about what might have happened to him. Only later, it became clear that he was betrayed by both Robert Hanssen and Aldrich Ames. In all likelihood, he received what the Russian legal system calls the highest means of punishment, the death sentence.

[edit] Legacy

CIA officer Jeanne Vertefeuille said, "He didn’t do this for money. He insisted on staying in place to help us. It was a bad day for us when we lost him." [1]

[edit] References in Popular Culture

  • Though it is unknown if Polyakov served as the basis for the fictional character Misha Filitov in Tom Clancy's book, The Cardinal of the Kremlin, there are many similarities between their stories.

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Elaine Shannon. "Death of The Perfect Spy", Time, June 24, 2001. Retrieved on 2007-07-22. 
  2. ^ Ann Blackman. "Spooks, shadows, codes, and moles — Spy wars, from inside the KGB", Boston Globe, March 6, 2005. Retrieved on 2007-07-22. 
  3. ^ INTERVIEW WITH SANDY GRIMES. The National Security Archive. CNN (January 30, 1998).
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