DIVISION II OF THE AVH

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80S01540R005900010013-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 8
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 7, 2013
• Sequence Number: 13
• Publication Date: August 16, 1954
• Content Type: REPORT

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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
INFORMATION REPORT
SECRET/CONTROL ? U. S.
Hungary
This Document contains information affecting the Na-
tional Defense of the United States, within the mean-
ing of Title 18, Sections 793 and 794, of the U.S. Code, as
amended. Its transmission or revelation of its contents
to or receipt by an unauthorized person is prohibited
by law. The reproduction of this form is prohibited.
OFFICIALS ONLY
REPORT
DATE DISTR.
NO. OF ' PA0ES4
REQUIREMENT NO.
REFERENCES
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16 August 1954
RD
50X1-HUM
THE SOURCE EVALUATIONS IN THIS REPORT ARE DEFINITIVE.
THE APPRAISAL OF CONTENT IS TENTATIVE.
(FOR KEY SEE REVERSE)
1. One of the missions of the AVH (Allamvedeltni. Ha.t4/s6.g - State Security Authority)
is to secure and control the borders of the Hungarian Peoples Republic against
enemies of the State, employing passport control and all other measures that
this duty implies, and to defend .the country against armed assault on the borders,
The responsibility for this mission is exercised by Division IV(Foeosztaly)
of the AVH, which is directly rsponsible for the organization and maintenance.
of the Border Guards (Hatgroerseg), including the collection of tactical intell-
igence relative to the completion of its assigned mission. The personnel 50X1-HUM
strength of Division IV is estimated at 8,000 to 99000. (2) Although Major
General Lis zl e PIFO S, Commanding General of the AVH and former Commander of
Division IV continued nominally in command of Division IV even after he was
elevated to' his present position following removal. of Gabor PITER, Lt, Col,
Jt?nos SZALVA, previously PIFOS1 Chief of Staff s, assumed active command as a
result of the'-personnel changes caused by the Janaary 1953 purge. In addition
to a Commander, Division IV is provided with a Chief of Staff, a Soviet Adviser
and AVH Interpreter, and presumably with a Secretariat, (3) 50X1-HUM
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(Note: Washington Distribution Indicated by "X"; Field Distribution By "#".)
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3. Division IV is a military organization, patterned on the Hungarian Army'although
totally independent of the Army, and thus has the usual pyramidal;-military'
command structure common to all military services. Although the-lower grades of
NCOts and enlisted-personnel are Army draftees who are assigned to.Division':tV
at-induction, the officers and'higher grades of NCO's are career-AVH'men; (/+)
The following sections (osztAly) are known to exist within the structure of
Division IV, beside those elements of apurely military nature; this listing is
Counter-intelligence Section -
Military Operations Section
c. Political Section,
d,-.Personnel Section
e. Registry Section.
Tactical intelligence of the border-areas
for the purpose of insuring their security
against illegal entry or exit,:
Direction of and planning border control and
security,
Political indoctrination and education of
the officers and men,
t"
- Kadering0?and the handling of related per-
sonnel matters,
'Maintenance of Division IV Agent and
General Operational Registry,
f. Supply Section Distribution of all materiel, supplies,..
and funds
The :Counter-intelligence Section (Felderit8 Oszt9ly has the primary . duty of
controlling the'illegal border crosser movement by anticipating that. movement
through -the detection. of the channels used and the individuals involve'&jj* "(k5)
Its activities are legally limited to the immediate-border areas, although it
does-not-always-restrict its operations to.the border areas and thus frequently
comes into conflict with Division VIII (Positive Intelligence'Operations) over
operations.involving illegal border crosser entering Hungary from the West.
This section has three sub-sections (alosztaly), and maintains CI detachments,
numbering from five to twenty men dependent upon such factors as topography
and incidence of illegal crossings, located within the installations of most
of the Border Guard Troop Detachments. (6) Members'of the Counter-innte'lli-
gence Section may??,rear civilian'clothes-or.Border Guard uniforms, although the
former are usually preferred. The section is composed of the following sub-
sections:
a. 'Western Border Area Sub-section
b. 'Southern Border Area Sub-section
c. Adjacent "People's Democracies!' Sub=section
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5. The control of illegal border--crossing is accomplished through CI-Section 50X1-HUM
recruitment-of informer nets (hiflok) composed of indigenous' residents on
both sides of the border, to a depth of 10 to 15 kilometers.
6. Whenever an illegal border-crosser is apprehended by Division IV personnel,
he is held by the CI Section and interrogated for about 2!, hours. The CI
Section is not concerned with the potential espionage or sabotage aspects
inherent either in the illegal crosser's trip or in the detection of border-
area residents assisting illegal border-crossers, nor actually in their
apprehension; these are the responsibilities of the Division I personnel in
the local. Provincial Department. The CI Section interrogation is designed
solely to enable the Border Guards to anticipate and thwart future illegal
crossings through the same channels, and thus it is limited to determining
such questions as the method,route,and place of crossing, assistance given
to the illegal crosser, his purpose in crossing. Following the CI Section
interrogation, the illegal border-crosser is handed over to the local Provincial
Department, where he is interrogated by the Division VI (Investigation,'Irk-
terrogation,, Arrest, and Prison Maintenance) personnel.,in Section 6'of'the
Department, after which he will be turned over to personnel of Division'I or
Division VIII for exploitation, or simply jailed by Division'VI as the case
requires.
7. The Military Operations Section (Hadmueveleti Osztaly) is responsible for
planning and.dire cig the control and security of the Hunga?ian borders.
Included in the execution of this mission is the assignment of additional'
Border Guard troops to those 'areas where-an increase in illegal border cross-
ing or other illegal activity in border areas required them, and the laying
and maintenance of physic 1 border obstacles such as barbed wire, flares,
mines, and' plowed strips. 50X1-HUM
8. The Political;.Sectionais responsible for the indoctrination and education of
the officers and men'of the Border Guard, and is presumed not to differ
radically,, if at all, from the organization of similar units throughout the
rest of the,military services.
9.' The Personnel Section4 is= primarily responsible for el ca4erineDivision IV
personnel, and also for related personnel matters. (10) The members of this
section are Division IV personnel, rather than Division V personnel, although
this section is under the direction of Division V.
1G. The Registry Section and its organization are completely unknown, beyond the
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fact that it exists, and that in a manner... similar to Division.VIII, Division IV
th intains its own.Reg stry distinct from the AVH Registry, Division III/3.
I The Supply Section (Gazdasagi) performs the quartermaster function for..n Ls
but also has the added responsibility of handling Division IV finances.
The Supply Section has,a Procurement and Liaison Team assigned?to Division VII
(Supply, Administrative Suppori, Hoiising)'from which the Te'am'obtains the
neces?ary materiel, supplies9and f`uids,,for the distribution of which this
section is responsible.
12. Until-approximately 1948, the Hungarian borders were manned by police known as
the Border:Police (Hater Rendoerseg), who wore the same uniform as the.civil
police. The 1948 reorganization of the then AVO, resulting in many changes
including one involving the change in title. to AVH, led. to the formation-of the
AVH'Border Guards in late 1948,or early 1949, presumably'by absorbing the
majority of the former Border-Police. During the transformation period; which
lasted until the fall of 1949,'the Border Guards were titled the Bader 'Rivet..
and Air Patrol '(literally Surveillance) (Hater Folyam -s.Legi Rendeszetj.-'The'
~~. brown uniform was adopted in the summer or fall of 1949,'and Division IV':of-the
AVH was then established in its present form in the fall o?.1949.' Its full
official title as bean since then the State Security (Defense) Border Guard
High Command (Allamvedelmi Hataroers(g Foeparancsnoksig).
13. The exact Border Guard troop disposition is'unknown, although by the nature of
their function they are necessarily stationed in'the border areas.; The 50X1-HUM
following is a list of the locations where elements of the Border Guard are
known to be established, and where possible the subordinate units are-given
an effort has also been made to indicate the size.of the unit where possible:
Szeged
Szoereg
KuebekhAza
Gyala (on the Belgradi Mue ut,
close to'the border)
'Morahalom
Varostanya (about 2 km. outside
of the town in
Bokortanya)
Kelebia (about 200 meters from
the railroad station)
Szombathely
Pornoapati (on the main road
in a two-story
building)
there are ''.50X1-HUM
two battalions stationed at Szeged.
The Szeged Border "Gus.r'd '.Barracks
are located on Nagykoerut'between
Kalvaria ut and Szentharomsag'ut,
in.the'former'"Hiradoi" Barracks.
Each 'of the subordinate detach-
ments has"a strength'of"at least""
one platoon '(36 'men) ; -'some ' of them
may be of greater strength.
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there'a~re two
battalions stationed at Szombathely,
located in'three'to four-story..
buildings next torthe-hospitale
su etac en strength is one 50X1-HUM
"' tie. ? .-brie. known
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Kiskunhalas
So r - .
Iubertus
Csorna
Vamosmikola
- Kiskunhalas is a regional-'or
Apntinnpl quarters, and
there-is a regiment
stationed there.
- Sopron probably (sic) has"at least
a battalion, which is housed'in five
or six three-story buildings.
- Csorna has a unit of unknown
strength; it may be (sic)" a_bat
talion. The quarters are outside
of the town on the road to; Sopron
in a three-story building.'
- Szob has a unit of unknown strength;
it may be (sic) a battalion, 'It is
stationed in a former school on the
main street of the town.
Vamosmikola has a unit of unknown
strength, which is quartered in an
old castle.
P4cs - no details known
Zalaegerszeg - no details.known
Gyoer - no details known
Balassgyarmat. - no details known
.The exact limits of the border zones is unknown, but they are estimated at
approximately 15 kilometers along both the Austrian and Yugoslav borders. The
southern, Yugoslav border is more strongly guarded than is the western, Austrian
border. The greatest concentration. of guard troops is between'Baja'and'Szeged,
where there are no-river or,other natural obstacles. On the western-border,
there is a known border-zone pass (hattrsav igazolvany) check point on the rail
line north-west from Gyoer to Hegyeshalom, probably east of Mosonmagyaroir&r,
and another between Kapuvdr and Feroes.zentmiklos on the highway and rail line
leading west from Gyoer to. Sopron. On the southernbordet, there is a 50X1-HUM
known road barrier and check point on the highway leading due south froth Baja
toward Nagybaracska, two-thirds km. south of Baja, and there is ariother-oh the
Baja to Szeged highway just west of Csalvoly; still another is known between
Tompa and Kiskunhalas on the north-south highway lying about halfway 'between
Baja and Szeged.' The Czech border is lightly guarded. Only if'a?person appears
to be heading directly for the border is he likely to be challenged for a
document check by these guards.
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15. Border-zone passes are issued by the local police upon personal application;
the AVH has'no part in it, although Division IV is solely responsible for- the
documentation control throughout the border zones. A temporary border one pass
is issued by the police in the inland city of origin for the border--zone-city
of destination explicitly, = The temporary pass is honored by-the border- 50X1-HUM
zone authorities inasmuch as possession of it is a"guarantee attesting'to the'
political reliability.of .the bearer by his. local police.- Ordinarily -any 'business;
family, or personal reason is sufficient justification, s61 o as the 'regiiestor
does not belong to a politically unreliable classification, (14) Permanent
border-zone residence is acquired through personal application' to' the local police
ofTthe border city involved, on the authority of a temporary border pass issued
by,the-police of the,inland.city of origin (who, as noted, necessarrily'have
passed-on the individual's reliability in, order to have issued the , pass, and to
some degree on the justification for the change of residence). Sufficient jus-
tification must: also be presented to the border-zone city police at'the time-of
application; a particularly valid reason would be new employment which was to the
advantage of the government, especially from the national security point of view.
(15) Such a justification as the requester's desire to move near his family might
or, might:;not be favorably accepted, depending on many factors including the.
family's reliability, family conditions, and similar issues. Although acceptable
justification is variable in each individual case, persons with the-,stigma of
having been Kulaks, former SS and army officers, or "reactionaries"; all of whom
have been vigorously removed as permanent residents to inland sites. would naturally:
never be able to provide justification which would be acceptable even to.permit
them to obtain a temporary pass.
(2)
Comment;:,
estimated
20.,'000in;`addition'to the,8,000to 9,000 assigned to the Border Guards, there1
arre_approximately.;6,000 engaged -in'intelligence collection and support (Division
VIII,III, VII and-Unit'X/3, presumably), and about 5,000 in internal security
,(Divisions I, II, V, VI, IX and X,. presumably).
(3) Comment: it is likely a Soviet Adviser is assigned to the various lower 50X1-HUM
epic eeoons.of Division IV, especially to the Counter-intelligence*Section; this
is, however, an assumption, not substantiated by specific knowledge.
('4) Comment: An AVH officer sits on the induction board, which each fall, . 50X1-HUM
urging the draft period .of two to three weeks, determines each 'inductee'sfiiture
assignment as to branch of service. It is at this time that the newIenlisted ._
personnel for the Military Divisions IV and IX are chosen. The exact-procedure
which determines that a specific inductee is to be assigned to Division IV is.
unknown, but. the major criterion in selecting a draftee for service in-the
Border Guards is believed to be his political reliability and background.
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ovepall,AVH strength ,at about
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(5)
Comment: The internal secus^#.ty' ,o f. Division
IV; howev&?9 is" the 50X1-HUM
responsibility of. Division II (Military Counter-'int
elligence).'
(6)
Comment: The following CI Detachments are kn
own
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Csorna
Sopron
Szob
Szombathely
Comment: The Border Guard command lines are totally independei'it*of-all 50X1 -HUM
.other AVH channels. The troop detachments., and all specialized personnel of
Division IV attached to these detachments, are physically separate from the
Pr;ovincial Departments, maintaining their own offices and quarters. "They also
only report to and receive orders from their own Headquarters Division, and
are in no way subject to the command of the Provincial Department chiefs,
Close liaison'is normally maintained between the two., however., 50X1-HUM
{10) 'Co mmente
a sOnnel Section
la
must exist ere,-an in` the
,othy Military Divisions of the AVH, since aderinf is an essential for all
other AVH career personnel. The presence of a special section to handle
Division V matters would be justified on the grounds of the size of the Mili-
tart' Divisions, and their somewhat different functional nature.
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(14)
Comment: If business is given, the applicant would have a statement
from his employer indicating his destination and duration of stay. In the
case of frequent travellers, the applicant may have a more or less permanent
statement from his employer; truck drivers have trip tickets issued by their
dispatchers. It is unknown whether these trip tickets are revalidated or re-
issued for each trip,
(15) Comment: The documentation procedures for a change of residence ir-
vo wing a move into a border zone appear to be normal in all other respects,- 50X1-HUM
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