The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University

The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University

13.07.2015 Views

additional specific instructions had arrived from Moscow. Bogdanov knew that the end wasnear. Many signs supported his suspicion. More and more new people were arriving inAfghanistan from the Center: special forces operatives, counterintelligence officers, somemysterious generals from the Ministry of Defense. It was clear that a major campaign wasin the works, but what would this campaign be like? Who would carry it out? Theopposition forces? Or would the Soviets do the dirty work? The Center remained mum,leaving Bogdanov and Osadchiy to proceed without authorization to deploy theiroperatives around Amin. They decided that they needed to be prepared for any turn ofevents. Whatever would happen, they felt, would happen soon.The newly arrived Zenit members were oriented towards surveillance of theimportant sites in Kabul—the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of the Interior, governmentbuildings, communications centers, radio and television centers, prisons, and the airport.They studied possible approaches to these buildings, taking into consideration tactics tostorm and capture them, as well as ways to retreat.It became increasingly difficult to gain access to Amin. However, there were severalSoviet specialists in his entourage who were not affiliated with the KGB, namely thedieticians who consulted the head of state and the members of his family on issues ofnutrition. They could not be trusted with more sensitive matters relating to unfoldingevents. Bogdanov and Osadchiy limited conversations with them to trying to find out aboutAmin’s gastronomical preferences, his perceived weaknesses, and his daily schedule. Theconversations with the dieticians took place when they arrived at the embassy, so as toallay any suspicions. The dieticians in Amin’s circle were supposed to be joined soon by anew cook from Moscow.654

There was one other person who was working closely with Amin: Major YuriKutepov from the Ninth Directorate of the KGB. Kutepov served as the adviser to MajorJandad, the head of Amin’s personal guard. However, because Kutepov didn’t receive anyinstructions from his immediate leadership in the Ninth Directorate (he could not receivethose instructions because everything was highly classified), he continued to providesecurity for Amin as earnestly and conscientiously as possible. That was the onlyinstruction that Kutepov could fulfill—nothing was to threaten the man under hisprotection. It made no sense to address him with sensitive requests that would lead him tobelieve that something could threaten the subject of his protective custody.That secrecy would play a cruel joke on many of the actors as the drama laterunfolded * .The transfer of the head of state’s residence from Ark Palace to the edge of Kabul,where Darul Aman Road ended, was planned for December. There, removed from the citydwellings, the majestic palace—almost a castle—which had previously been used as a basefor the Kabul garrison, sat perched on a hill. The building had undergone fundamentalreconstruction immediately after the revolution, with the help of German specialists. It wassupplied with everything necessary for the life and work of the head of state. No expenseswere spared. The palace was decorated generously with granite, marble, and onyx.Beautiful crystal chandeliers lighted its rooms, and the wooden floor had been laid by hand.The site had one significant drawback: whereas the Ark Palace was located in thevery heart of Kabul and surrounded by two thick fortress walls, the Tajbeg stood alone atop* Major Kutepov, who would not receive any instructions from his bosses regarding Amin’s “death sentence,”was bound to suffer from this cloud of secrecy, as he would remain loyal to his assigned duty until the finalmoment.655

additional specific instructions had arrived from Moscow. Bogdanov knew that the end wasnear. Many signs supported his suspicion. More and more new people were arriving in<strong>Afghanistan</strong> from the Center: special forces operatives, counterintelligence officers, somemysterious generals from the Ministry of Defense. It was clear that a major campaign wasin the works, but what would this campaign be like? Who would carry it out? <strong>The</strong>opposition forces? Or would the Soviets do the dirty work? <strong>The</strong> Center remained mum,leaving Bogdanov and Osadchiy <strong>to</strong> proceed without authorization <strong>to</strong> deploy theiroperatives around Amin. <strong>The</strong>y decided that they needed <strong>to</strong> be prepared for any turn ofevents. Whatever would happen, they felt, would happen soon.<strong>The</strong> newly arrived Zenit members were oriented <strong>to</strong>wards surveillance of theimportant sites in Kabul—the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of the Interior, governmentbuildings, communications centers, radio and television centers, prisons, and the airport.<strong>The</strong>y studied possible approaches <strong>to</strong> these buildings, taking in<strong>to</strong> consideration tactics <strong>to</strong>s<strong>to</strong>rm and capture them, as well as ways <strong>to</strong> retreat.It became increasingly difficult <strong>to</strong> gain access <strong>to</strong> Amin. However, there were severalSoviet specialists in his en<strong>to</strong>urage who were not affiliated with the KGB, namely thedieticians who consulted the head of state and the members of his family on issues ofnutrition. <strong>The</strong>y could not be trusted with more sensitive matters relating <strong>to</strong> unfoldingevents. Bogdanov and Osadchiy limited conversations with them <strong>to</strong> trying <strong>to</strong> find out aboutAmin’s gastronomical preferences, his perceived weaknesses, and his daily schedule. <strong>The</strong>conversations with the dieticians <strong>to</strong>ok place when they arrived at the embassy, so as <strong>to</strong>allay any suspicions. <strong>The</strong> dieticians in Amin’s circle were supposed <strong>to</strong> be joined soon by anew cook from Moscow.654

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