Chapter 69

"Listen, the National Expo of the United States is about to open. Originally, the head of the Second Main Directorate should have been next to the General Secretary, and the commander of the security work should have been the head of the Fifth Main Directorate. But you know the head of the Second Main Directorate is about to retire. If we let Director Aleksey take the place of the head of the Second Main Directorate next to the General Secretary, it wouldn't make sense! So neither of them is suitable. You are the youngest head of a Main Directorate in the KGB, with a good image, and most importantly, you have a reputation in the United States. This time, you will stand next to the General Secretary!" Considering the relationship between the domestic counterintelligence and the secret police, Shelepin ultimately replaced the two direct commanders and had Shelestov take over. Looking at Shelestov, who looked like a zombie, he said, "What are you afraid of? You've attended such events before!"

"Am I afraid?" Shelestov denied outright, "They should be afraid of me. I understand. I'll take care of this. I'm going back to headquarters to sort out the work of the Military Administration Directorate first! Otherwise, I'm afraid they'll forget they have a director!" He took two sets of cutlery and left the General Secretary's office.

"This little guy, he treats my place like a cafeteria!" Shelepin sniffed and shook his head with a bitter smile, walking to the window and pushing open the tightly closed window. Directly opposite was the huge statue of Dzerzhinsky in the square.

The Main Directorates of the KGB are equal in administrative level, but they differ in authority. The two top-tier directorates are the First Main Directorate (foreign intelligence) and the Second Main Directorate (domestic counterintelligence). Which one is more important depends on which one has more progress in their work this year, not simply on their numerical order.

Like the First Main Directorate, the Second Main Directorate has twelve departments. Although it has fewer departments than the sixteen of the First Main Directorate, its functions are the same. The first six departments are divided by region, but not by the administrative map of the Soviet Union. Instead, they are divided by the world map: the First Department handles the United States and Latin America, the Second Department handles the Commonwealth countries, the Third Department handles the Germanic countries including the Nordic nations, the Fourth Department handles Western European countries, the Fifth Department handles developed countries outside Europe, and the Sixth Department handles Third World countries. On average, each department has five to eight sections, supported by fifty advisors, special investigators, and backup action teams.

The department that Shelestov mentioned, which has the same function as the anti-corruption department under the Council of Ministers, is the Twelfth Department of the Second Main Directorate. This is the KGB's internal anti-corruption bureau, with the same authority as the department under the Council of Ministers, allowing it to investigate any corrupt individuals in the Soviet Union.

The Second Main Directorate ranks second in terms of personnel within the KGB, only slightly fewer than the Border Troops Directorate, which has 300,000 border guards. The work scope of the Second Main Directorate is within the Soviet Union. Apart from the First Main Directorate, which deals with foreign affairs, all other Main Directorates from the Third Main Directorate onward have overlapping work scopes with the Second Main Directorate and theoretically should cooperate with it.

Although Shelepin did not promote Shelestov upon his return, if Shelestov were to take over the Second Main Directorate, his authority within the KGB would rise to a new level, allowing him to stand on equal footing with the ordinary KGB deputy chairmen. After all, there are fifteen deputy chairmen, and apart from the two first deputy chairmen, most do not interfere with the work of the Main Directorates. Shelestov still hasn't recognized all fifteen deputy chairmen...

Now, he must focus on the work of the Third Main Directorate. Back at the headquarters of the Third Main Directorate, Shelestov had Lukani call all the department heads for a meeting and said to Isayevna, "Go to the Technical Management Directorate and get the Tetris and the electronic camera!"

The two items Shelestov wanted had been under research for two years. Tetris had already produced eight prototypes and had finally become a device about the size of a computer case, similar to its future form. The electronic camera had also successfully passed its tests.

"Long time no see, comrades!" Shelestov sat down in his seat. The twelve department heads corresponded to the sixteen military districts in the Soviet Union, the four groups stationed in Eastern Europe, the Ministry of Defense and General Staff, the Air Force and Air Defense Forces, the Navy and Defense, the defense industry, and major design bureaus.

After greeting them, Shelestov waved his hand and said, "Let's talk about work first. Everyone has read the documents issued from above. The establishment of the Strategic Rocket Forces is inevitable, and all resistance must be eliminated! The order also includes a reduction of 300,000 troops, and both tasks must be carried out simultaneously to ensure the successful implementation of the work! General Pavlov, please speak."

"The opinion of the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff is to select several combat units with glorious histories from the existing Red Army, retain their designations, and integrate them into the Strategic Rocket Forces. At the same time, officers will be selected from the entire army to fill the Strategic Rocket Forces, and those who do not meet the standards will be eliminated!" General Pavlov stood up and spoke confidently, "I personally support this. The General Staff of the Red Army will conduct the first round of eliminations, and we will conduct the second round to ensure that the youngest branch of the military has the most professional officer corps!"

"We must strictly review the officers. The Strategic Rocket Forces are different from other branches of the military, and the officers must be strictly reviewed. We cannot make mistakes in this area and must prevent unreliable individuals from entering the Strategic Rocket Forces!" Shelestov nodded, "As for the 300,000 troop reduction, let's hear everyone's opinions..."

The order for the troop reduction was issued at the end of last year, giving the Ministry of Defense a year to carry it out. The Military Administration Directorate must assist or monitor this process to ensure that the Red Army, which has already reduced by two million troops, does not rebound. Khrushchev's development of the nuclear and space industries ultimately relies on the Red Army's budget to find funding.

Opening the military unit files sent by the Ministry of Defense, he looked at them for a moment and then drew a large X on them, saying coldly, "The troop reduction must target the military districts in the interior. The military districts in Central Asia, North Caucasus, Transcaucasus, and Turkestan cannot be reduced. Have the Ministry of Defense redraw the units!"

Shelestov understood that the planners in the Ministry of Defense had good intentions, hoping to increase the proportion of Slavs in the military. However, Shelestov would never agree to reduce the troops from Central Asia and the Caucasus. Instead, he would reduce the Slavic troops. It would be better for the Slavs to return home, get married, and have children. The 300,000 troops could produce a significant number of children in two years, which would be better than doing nothing.

"Another important task is our 100,000 officer plan, which I formulated in Berlin. I believe everyone has seen it. We will start implementing it now to ensure that all Red Army officers from second lieutenants to major generals have a positive interaction with our Military Administration Directorate! The plan has already been sent to the General Secretary by Chairman Shelepin, and the General Secretary highly appreciates it!" Shelestov said with an unyielding tone, "To ensure the army follows the central command, we must make the officers understand who they are loyal to. This is complementary to curbing Bonapartist ideas!"

【Compiling data is really tiring...】

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