ANTI-REGIME ACTIVITY IN LATVIA AND THE UKRAINE (ATTITUDES TOWARD RUSSIANS, PARTISAN ACTIVITY AND SUPPRESSIVE MEASURES)

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80T00246A042800640001-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 8
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 24, 2010
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: June 26, 1958
• Content Type: REPORT

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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
This material contains information affecting the National Defense of the United States within the meaning of the Espionage Laws, Title
18, U.S.C. Secs. 793 and 794, the transmission or revelation of which in any manner to an unauthorized person is prohibited by law.
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PROCESSING COPY 25X1
COUNTRY USSR (Latvian SSR, Ukrainian. SSR) ..REPOR
SUBJECT Anti-Regime Activity in. Latvia and.the DATE DISTR. 26 June 1958
'Ukraine _ NO. PAGES 1
100,
REFERENCES RD
INFO...
PLACE &
DATE ACQ.
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25X1
A report on anti-Sovietregime activities in th Latvian
SSR
IThe report deals with general attitudes of Latvians toward. Soviet 25X1
rule, partisan activity, and Soviet.attempts to suppress partisan. activity
in the.area of Smiltene (N 57-26, E ,25-51+) . The report ,also deals.wi-t?hthe
attitudes of the population in the.western Ukraine toward Soviet troops and
incidents of individual attacks against Soviet soldiers in the-area around.
Nesterov (N.49-41, E .25-23) .
S-E -C-R-E-T
STATE I X ARMY
NAVY X AIR I X FBI I
AEC
~k,NFORMAT'tON REPORT kINFORMATION REPORT
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ANTI-REGIME ACTIVITIES IN LATVIA AND THE UKRAINE
Introduction
The following geographical locations are mentioned in this report:
BILSK (Coordinates not available; about 15 km northeast
of SMILTENE)
IVAUA FRANKO (N49-45,
E23-44)
MAGEROV 050-0$;
E23-42)
MUKACHEVO: (N48,27,
E22-43)
NESTEROV (N49-42,
E25-23)
PALSMANIS
(approxim
ately N57
-2
8, E26-10)
PSKOV
(N57-.50;
E2
8-20)
RANKA
(N57-1O,
E2
6-09)
SMILTENE
(N57-26,
E2
5-54)
A. LATVIA
1.. Attitudes of Population
a. Causes of dissatisfaction
the Soviet occupation of Latvia was never accepted 25X1
as final by most Latvians; they looked back on the years of independence prior to
World War II as a period in which national development was fitted to the character-
istics.of the country; that' is, of a small agricultural state which could live
.very well by trading its products with-the more industrially advanced nations of
the West in exchange for the machinery, luxury goods, and consumer items which the
Latvians could not economically produce. At the same time, the disposition of
their own production could be handled in their own best interests; they were not
required to gear their activities to the requirements of a great central state.
The forcible orientation of Latvia toward MOSCOW, the destruction of
every vestige of independence, and the brutal deportation of thousands of Latvian
citizens left a mark which no succeeding Soviet; regime could erase. 25X1
throughout his residence in Latvia he and all non-Latvian'residents were
living under a temporary and precarious military occupation which suppressed the 25X1
hatred and resentment of all Latvians toward everything Russian.l Most Latvians
believed sincerely that, given an independent course, they could achieve a higher
standard of living than the Russians, that their. country, though small, had-always
been economically, intellectually, and morally 'superior to the Soviet Union, and that
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the policies of forced collectivization of agriculture and the confiscation,of
private property together with the imposition of an alien Communist bureaucracy;
had reduced them to the level of the poorest Russian peasant. The adult Latvian,
one who remembered his country in the days before WW II and the Soviet annexation*,
recalled that almost any householder could buy and keep a bicycle and radio of
Latvian manufacture whereas after the sovietization of the country it appeared'
to him that he had to work much harder than before merely to feed himself and his
family.
after the initial successes of the Soviet regime. in
Latvia, accomplished by deportation of dissident and possibly dissident groups,
collectivization,,and confiscation of private property, the Communist party in-,
fluence in Latvia was declining. Although most Latvians realize that resistance is
hopeless without a revolution or a third world war, they continue to manifest
passive resistance. Anti-Soviet slogans in Latvian chalked on walls, caricatures
of Communist leaders scrawled in public places, !a slowdown and lack of enthusiasm
in fulfilling Communist party orders were still common in 1953
b. Churchgoing among Latvians
In SMII; there were three churches, a Latvian
Catholic and a Baptist church attended by Latvians, and a Russian Orthodox (pravo-
alavnaya) church. attendance at the. Latvian Catholic church
was much larger percentagewise than in other parts of the Soviet Union; the Russian
Orthodox church was attended by a few older people among the Russian residents;
the Baptist church was an insignificant factor.;
Attitude~of Population toward Regime
the vast majority of Latvians were anti-Soviet'
in sentiment`. 3ivided as follows:
(1} Opposed to re gime strongly, to,the point where they would partic-
ipate in either open or guerrilla sabotage operations if supported by the western
powers- 50 percent.
(2) Opposed to regime but'would not participate in actions against it
of the type suggested under (1). Would, however, strongly support an anti-Communist
government when once established in power 20 percent.
(3) Neutral and/or indifferent to regime 15 percent.
(4) Support regime mildly and/or belong to Communist party or party=
controlled mass organizations, however, would not fight to defent it 10 percent.
(5)-Support regime. strongly and would fight to defend it 5 percent.
d. Nationalist Expression
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The deep and ever=present current of nationalism
among Latvians was either suppressed by'the Soviets or turned to their own-ends.
The former president of Latvia, Karlis ULMANIS,mas revered by his countrymen as
a latter-day Peter the Great who worked at menial jobs among his people in order
to understand their everyday problems. By the Soviets he was always referred to
as a small burgeois or a Fascist usurper because of his energetic action in- re-
war political crises. Those 25X1
national figures whose activities bespoke little or no political activity were hon-
ored, such as the national poet_.RAINIS and the novelist VILLIS LAOIS. Celebration
of the Latvian national holiday on 24 June or 24 July , 25X1
the "holiday of song (dziesmu svetki)"' was greatly encourage a. erwa s, state-
ments were made by party leaders, that only under Soviet rule would such expressions
of national spirit be permitted. Latvian national songs were permitted as long as
they did not contain any anti-Soviet sentiments. some type of 25X1
national flag with a hammer and sickle superimposed was permitted at gatherings
3. Russian Families in Latvia
Russians of two types came to Latvia in the.post-war
period, those who were poor and who were seeking an opportunity to better themselves
economically and those who were dedicated to Communist Party principles and were
crusading for the complete integration of Latvia into the Communist state. They
looked upon Latvia as a new frontier, an area where their talents of organization
and; propaganda could be put to best use and they in turn could achieve a stature
in..party circles impossible to obtain in the older sections of the USSR.
family were sympathetic toward the national 25X1
aspirations of the Latvian people-for independence; at the same time, they. felt
themselves to be an alien element, mistrusted, hated, and suspected,'living an un-
easy existence under a regime maintained only by Soviet armed force.
4. Active Armed Resistance
a. General
armed resistance had existed in Latvia.from 14W II 25X1
up to 1953 In the rural and forested areas
around SMILTENE armed partisan.bands lived by forage and looting, raiding collective
farms, and waging a campaign of terror against both Russian and Latvian Communists.
It was rumored that these men were armed with WW II German weapons-hidden at the
time of the German surrender and also that arms were smuggled in from Finland. Up
to 1953 rumors were common of..armed skirmishes between these partisans and the
local police and security organs. In.SMILTENE!the Latvians repeated the rumors of
these skirmishes gleefully as an example that tYi.e independent spirit of their little
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country had not-been completely snuffed out; the anti-Soviet Russians
also repeated these rumors but, with somewhat mixed feelings,' since
.,anger .
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pro-Soviet Russians either refused to believe the rumors or, if the evidence of
partisan activity was such"that they could not ignore it, angrily dismissed it as
the work of foreign agents.
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b. Incidents
times
the following incidents
recounted many 25X1
(1) In PALSMANIS an unrecalled number of both Russian and Latvian
Communist Party members were killed in 1949 and,1950.. Attempts to find the killers
resulted in an unknown number of deaths among the police and security troops.
(2) In BILSK9 a small village about 15 kilometers northeast of SMILTENE,
an-unidentified senior lieutenant of the MVD and the director of the Smiltene MTS,
JANSSON (fnu) were both killed by unknown armed; men in 1949. The local police and
MVD_-unit attempted to track the killers with dogs but the road through the forest
near BILSK was mined and the attempt was.given up after one of the police was in-
jured...The killers were never captured.
(3) In 1951 an unidentified elderly Russian who was employed by the
security police in SMILTENE was seized by three' unidentified men armed with PPSh
SMGs in RANKA. After lecturing the Russian on the undesirability of working for
the state security organs, they shot him through both legs and left him to crawl
back to the village for help. 'This man subsequently recovered
(4) In the summer.of?1951 a mysterious fire broke out in a sawmill in
,~MILTENE. The local fire brigade, police, and security troops were called and
succeeded in putting out the fire. While they were so engaged,'a small barn adja-
cent to the MVD garrison headquarters. was seen..to go up in flames and ignite the
MVD building. This fire was put out but the coincidental nature of the fires made
everyone certain that the fire in the sawmill had been set in order to draw the
garrison out, of barracks and set fire to the MVD building.
(5) In 1953 several cases of.what was apparently' arson attempted arson,
or the malicious burning of Communist Party property occurred.
the mysterious burning of the local party secretary's house (VI A, thu), the
burning of a knitting mill about 27 kilometers least of SMILTENE, and the burning
of'a tekbriikum in SMILTENNE.
5. Soviet Methods of Countering Resistance
a. MVD Unit in SMILTENE
an unidentified MVD unit composed of about 60
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enlisted men and commanded by an unidentified 'Ca tain or Senior Lieutenant was sta-
tioned in SMILTENE continuously until 1955_
(1) Composition and Mission
b. Destroyer-B.Battalions-(Ist.rebitelniye batalyoni )
In order to combat the activities of the partisan bands, there'
was stationed in SMILTENE a special "destroyer squad" or "extermination battalion"
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(istrebitelnyv batalyon). The total strength of this unit was unknown) 25X1
there was never a strength of more than 15 men in SMILTENE at any 25X1
one time; nevertheless, this unit-,was always referred to by the local populace as
a-"battalion". the, members were contract troops.(nayemniye 25X1
voiska), hired for one year or less, at considerably higher than military pay,,,:under
quasi-military discipline, and with some form of military organization and rank
structure. Their sole mission was to fight the Latvian partisan bands around
SMILTENE. They did no reconnaissance but were only called upon when a known armed
band was in'the vicinity. They were subordinate!to'the local MVD unit in all re-
spects but were not garrisoned with the MVD troops, utilizing rather what had been
at one time a large private residence.
(2) Uniforms
the uniforms worn by these men uof a faded'
blue or blue-black cotton material, two piece with blouse, and breeches.(gimna-
styerka i bryuki). The material was similar instexture to that of a work coverall
(kombinezon). The breeches were not of a flaring military type but were more like
trousers which were tucked into military boots. A military type service cap (fura-
zhka) bearing a red star with a hammer and sickle was worn. They wore no shoulder-
boards or insignia of'any kind and from a distance could'be taken for a plant guard
or a student in an FZO (fabrichno-zavodakoye obucheniye).
(3) Arms
.,Destroyer battalions were armed with"unidentified German WW II
small arms, PPSh SMGs, or 1891/30 Mossin-Nagant!rifles.
(4) Vehicles
The group of approximately 15 of these-men stationed in-SMILTENE
had at their disposal two vehicles, a ZIS-150 and GAZ-51.
(5) Employment
these special units were necessary in this
area
these men would do anything for money, routing out and killing the partisans
In-the woods and swamps near SMILTENE was a job!.which even the MVD troops balked
a these were mercenaries (nayemniye voyska) who would go where a regular
so er would refuse to go.
these destroyer "battalions" were stationed in other parts ,24a and"tha Gran
cially hated and fearedi
the units were ma up of non- tvians but
did contain some Latvians. and
these men were eape=
6.ilimination of Latvian--Partisans
the Latvian partisans were eliminated by 1953
when he left for military service. secret members of an organized
resistance group will continue to exist but t hat the futility of open armed in..
surrecon is obvious to all Latvians at present.
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B. UKRAINE
1. General
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la~~
This area of'the Western Ukraine formed
a part of Poland in the period between the two world wars and prior to 1916 had
been under the administration of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. 25X1
an
di g a eas
s
ut
eth
popu
56
on
..aa
..+.......i
ed
-
. ----
l -
-~
--
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nically as follows: 25X1
Russian .5 to '6 percent
i
Ukrainian 65 percent (included Ruthenian
Polish 24.t6' 25 percent
Jews and other' 5 percent
2. Attitudes of Population
a. General
the large percentage of Ukrainians
wi shZ
n a separate-state..
did not
to be .coined to'the'Uk"rain'
the local inhabitants were surly, evasive, difficult to know and to understand,
and often actually hostile. This was partly bec use the Soviet Army was not looked
upon favorably by the civilian population. it. was axiomatic that
wherever large numbers of troops were stationedlin area and outnumbered the ci-
vilian population they would not be admired or respected.
the
Carpathian Military District contained more Soviet troops than any other area with-
in the European USSR, either because of the border location of the district or
because of the unpredictable sentiments of the population.3
b. Attacks against Soviet Soldiers
one specific example of physical harm which
befell a.So a soldier a ands of the civilian population in the Western '?
Ukraine._This occurred in the summer of 1955 when
a PFC Vassiliy SUDCVIY)was returning to`the unit a era dance in ms-imm an was
attacked by two unknown men with knives. Subject was severely wounded but managed
to return to his unit where the. guards on post assisted him to the 3d'Brigade Dis-
pensary which served the.NESTERCV garrison. The incident was investigated by un-
identified officers from Military District (okrug) but the attackers were never
found. 4
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an unidentified lieutenant colonel
Russian president of,a local collective farm had been killed under mysterious
circumstances. He warned the members not to go out alone after
dark.
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most local people refused to speak to Soviet soldiers.
c. Active armed Resistance
of active, armed resistance n this sL'
he destroyer battalions
were also active-in the Western Ukraine in the immediate postwar period.
sentiment for the Hungarian insurgents was partic-
ularly strong in MUKACHEVO in December 1956 because of the large Hungarian popu-
lation in that city.
Comments:
2. never heard the term "Ruthenian" in English or any similar sounding
word in Russian and lumped all of the native Slavic population which was neither
Russian nor Ukrainian under the term "Ukrainian". all Polish
nationalism had been uprooted in the immediate postwar per o an a a andard.saying
among the Russian members was that it had been driven underground
so that the local population spoke .a Ukrainian dialect by day and Polish at night.
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