Agencies of the United States
When World War II in Europe finally came to an end on May 7, 1945, a new
war was just beginning. The Cold War: denoting the open yet restricted rivalry
that developed between the United States and the Soviet Union and their
respective allies, a war fought on political, economic, and propaganda fronts,
with limited recourse to weapons, largely because of fear of a nuclear holocaust.
This term, The Cold War, was first used by presidential advisor Bernard Baruch
during a congressional debate in 1947. Intelligence operations dominating this
war have been conducted by the Soviet State Security Service (KGB) and the
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), representing the two power blocs, East and
West respectively, that arose from the aftermath of World War II. Both have
conducted a variety of operations from large scale military intervention and
subversion to covert spying and surveillance missions. They have known success
and failure. The Bay of Pigs debacle was soon followed by Kennedy's deft
handling of the Cuban missile crisis. The decisions he made were helped
immeasurably by intelligence gathered from reconnaissance photos of the high
altitude plane U-2. In understanding these agencies today I will show you how
these agencies came about, discuss past and present operations, and talk about
some of their tools of the trade.
Origin of the CIA and KGB
The CIA was a direct result of American intelligence operations during
World War II. President Franklin D. Roosevelt recognized the need to coordinate
intelligence to protect the interests of the United States. In 1941, he
appointed William J. Donovan to the head of the Office of Strategic Services
(OSS) with headquarters in London. Four departments made up the OSS: Support,
Secretariat, Planning, and Overseas Missions. Each of these departments directed
an array of sections known as 'operation groups'. This organization had fallen
into the disfavor of many involved in the federal... [continues]
When World War II in Europe finally came to an end on May 7, 1945, a new
war was just beginning. The Cold War: denoting the open yet restricted rivalry
that developed between the United States and the Soviet Union and their
respective allies, a war fought on political, economic, and propaganda fronts,
with limited recourse to weapons, largely because of fear of a nuclear holocaust.
This term, The Cold War, was first used by presidential advisor Bernard Baruch
during a congressional debate in 1947. Intelligence operations dominating this
war have been conducted by the Soviet State Security Service (KGB) and the
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), representing the two power blocs, East and
West respectively, that arose from the aftermath of World War II. Both have
conducted a variety of operations from large scale military intervention and
subversion to covert spying and surveillance missions. They have known success
and failure. The Bay of Pigs debacle was soon followed by Kennedy's deft
handling of the Cuban missile crisis. The decisions he made were helped
immeasurably by intelligence gathered from reconnaissance photos of the high
altitude plane U-2. In understanding these agencies today I will show you how
these agencies came about, discuss past and present operations, and talk about
some of their tools of the trade.
Origin of the CIA and KGB
The CIA was a direct result of American intelligence operations during
World War II. President Franklin D. Roosevelt recognized the need to coordinate
intelligence to protect the interests of the United States. In 1941, he
appointed William J. Donovan to the head of the Office of Strategic Services
(OSS) with headquarters in London. Four departments made up the OSS: Support,
Secretariat, Planning, and Overseas Missions. Each of these departments directed
an array of sections known as 'operation groups'. This organization had fallen
into the disfavor of many involved in the federal... [continues]
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