Destructive KGB actions against “Santara–Šviesa” in the 1960s to 1980s

One of the émigré organizations targeted by the KGB was the Santara-Šviesa Federation. The Soviet security service viewed the federation in negative terms as a tool of foreign special services carrying out activities inimical to the Soviet Union. The Soviet services feared that the allegedly inimical activities were being carried out under deceptive guises. But the KGB did not always understand the structure of Santara-Šviesa and the purpose of its activities, which sometimes led to failures in its work. In this article we seek to identify the main points of KGB plans to disrupt the federation‘s endeavors. These plans included information-gathering, infiltrating secret agents, and undertaking disinformation activities. Specific instances of activities planned and undertaken by the KGB are described; for example, attempts to infiltrate the federation with the help of agents and persons of confidence. The article also surveys possible attempts by Soviet security persons to exaggerate the results of their activities in the eyes of their superiors since the announced objectives were not always fully met. The KGB also organized disinformation campaigns against Santara-Šviesa and some of its more active members. Due to a lack of sufficient archival material the outcomes of these actions are difficult to ascertain. However, one may surmise that these actions were undertaken in the expectation of good results, which could not be obtained for objective reasons