Pavel Fitin Head of Soviet foreign intelligence, general Date of Birth: 28.12.1907 Country: Russia

Biography of Pavel Fitin

Pavel Mikhailovich Fitin was born in the village of Ozhogino in the Kurgan (then Tobolsk) region in 1907. At the age of 14, he began working in a local agricultural collective. A year later, Pavel became a member of the Komsomol and continued his education in Yalutorovsk. In 1927, Fitin joined the Communist Party and was involved in creating a pioneer organization before moving to Moscow for further studies.

After graduating from the Agricultural Academy's engineering faculty in 1932, he worked at the Moscow Institute of Mechanization and Electrification of Agriculture and later transferred to the publishing house "Selkhoziz." In 1934, Pavel was called into the army, but after a year of service as a private, he returned to the publishing house as deputy chief editor. However, his peaceful career took an unexpected turn.

During the first wave of repressions in the security forces, there was a shortage of personnel. Fitin, being a member of the Komsomol and the Party, was chosen for recruitment into the NKVD special school. After a few months of accelerated training, he was assigned to independent work. Starting in November 1939 with an internship in the NKVD's foreign intelligence department, Pavel became the deputy head of the Main Intelligence Directorate in a year. In May 1939, he became the head of the First Department.

Fitin revolutionized the intelligence structures, changing the style of work for residents and emphasizing analytical information processing. As a result, his department obtained accurate data on atomic weapons development and Germany's preparations for war. Despite personally reporting the precise date and time of the Nazi invasion to Stalin, the leader disregarded the information. Nevertheless, Fitin played a crucial role during World War II, coordinating foreign intelligence operations and providing support to partisan groups.

His service in the Soviet intelligence community was highly praised by Allen Dulles, the head of the CIA. However, Fitin faced a lack of recognition from his own country's leadership. He did not receive the rank of major general until July 1945. In 1946, due to the efforts of Lavrentiy Beria, Fitin was removed from his position and sent to Berlin as the deputy representative of the Ministry of State Security. Less than a year later, he was transferred to Sverdlovsk and then to Kazakhstan, where significant work on nuclear weapons development was taking place.

In 1951, Fitin became the Minister of State Security of Kazakhstan before being reassigned to Sverdlovsk as the head of the regional Ministry of Internal Affairs in 1953. After Beria's arrest in November 1953, Fitin was dismissed from service and struggled to find employment. He eventually settled in Moscow, working at the State Control Committee and later managing a photo lab for the Society for Friendship with Foreign Countries.

Pavel Mikhailovich Fitin remained physically active, playing tennis and enjoying fishing. He kept his past life and work a secret, not even disclosing it to his family. Fitin's family was shocked when he suddenly underwent surgery for a perforated ulcer, which ultimately led to his death in 1971. Only in 2008 was a memorial plaque installed in his hometown, and in 2017, a monument was erected in Moscow to honor his legendary leadership in intelligence. Fitin's story was later published in a book in 2015, and a documentary film about him aired on Russia 1 television.