To Stalin

To Stalin Top Secret Summaries Of The most important testimonies Of Those arrested 1937‐ 1938

A summary of the most important testimonies of those arrested by the GUGB NKVD of the USSR for March 17, 1938

Archive: AP RF. F. 3. Op. 24. D. 406. L. 33‐48

March 21, 1938

SECRETARY of the Central Committee of the CPSU (b) comrade STALIN

I am sending you a summary of the most important testimonies of those arrested by the NKVD GUGB for March 17, 1938.

Peopleʹs Commissar of Internal Affairs of the USSR Peopleʹs Commissar for State Security (EZHOV)

For the 3rd DEPARTMENT

1. MATISON, pom. chief of Glavazot. Interrogated: GOLOVANOV.

He confessed that he was a member of the anti‐Soviet Trotskyist organization in the nitrogen industry. In the anti‐Soviet Trotskyist organization, MATISON was involved at the end of 1935 by a member of this organization, formerly. early ʺGlavazotaʺ VRODOV (arrested).

MATISON, on the instructions of the Trotskyist organization, carried out subversive work in the field of supply and financing of enterprises and construction of the nitrogen industry. In order to carry out sabotage work at the enterprises of the nitrogen industry, MATISON specially selected and sent there a criminal and anti‐Soviet element as supply managers.

MATISON comes from a bourgeois family.

Until 1923 he lived in Latvia, where he worked as a lawyer. In 1923 he arrived in the USSR as a diplomatic worker of Latvia, declared himself a defector and remained in the USSR.

2. FAYNBERG VG, former head of the Main Directorate of Mechanical

Engineering NKTP. Interrogated by: VLADIMIROV, KLESCHEV.

He confessed that he was a member of the anti‐Soviet organization of the right, which existed in the Peopleʹs Commissariat of Heavy Industry. FEINBERG was involved in the organization of the rightists by Rukhimovich in 1935.

On the instructions of the organization of the rightists, FEINBERG carried out sabotage work, disrupting the production of equipment for the mining and fuel industries.

FEINBERG involved the rightists in the organization:

1) Svirsky Z.R. ‐ his deputy;

2) A.A. BROMBERGA ‐ Head of Gormashproekt;

3) ALEXEENKO ‐ engineer of Glavgormash;

4) FESENKO V.N. ‐ the former director of the Svet Shakhtyor plant;

5) ZIMINA I.I. ‐ Director of the Gorlovsky plant;

6) I.S. RAKOVSKY ‐ Head of the production and distribution department of Glavgormash;

7) LOKSHINA M.G. ‐ b. tech. director of the Gorlovka plant;

8) LEVINSKY ‐ the former director of the Svet Shakhtar plant.

All these persons are checked by us for arrest.

3. VERSHININ FP, former representative of Raznoexport of the USSR in Latvia. Interrogated: BEREZOVSKY, KUPRIANOV.

He confessed that he was a member of the Pravotrotskyist organization that existed in the system of the Peopleʹs Commissariat for Foreign Trade, where he was involved at the beginning of 1936, formerly. USSR Trade Representative in Lithuania PIKMANOM.

On the instructions of PIKMAN, he carried out sabotage when purchasing pedigree cattle in Lithuania for the Soviet Union. They deliberately in 1936 and 1937. cattle sick with brucellosis were purchased and, together with healthy ones, were sent to the Soviet Union, thereby spreading the disease of cattle in state and collective farms.

When purchasing livestock, he made large overpayments. In 1937, VERSHININ was overpaid to the Lithuanian landowners with 50,000 litas.

VERSHININ also testified that he had received a bribe of about 15,000 litas from Lithuanian landowners for the poor‐quality and sick cattle bought from them at inflated prices.

Along with this, VERSHININ, at the direction of PIKMAN, established an espionage connection with a representative of the Lithuanian livestock company ʺMaistasʺ KELISHA, to whom he passed on espionage materials about the state of animal husbandry in the USSR and about the needs for pedigree livestock.

VERSHININ named five employees of the trade mission and the plenipotentiary mission of the USSR in Lithuania as members of the Trotskyist organization (all were not arrested).

4. NISSENMAN LI, former deputy manager of the Vokhimpharm trust. Interrogated by BEREZOVSKY and PRISYAZHNYUK.

He testified that in 1932, as a former deputy manager of the Vokhimpharm trust, an active Trotskyist SHKLOVSKY (convicted), he was involved in an anti‐Soviet Trotskyist organization that existed in the system of the chemical‐pharmaceutical industry of the USSR Peopleʹs Commissariat for Health.

As a member of this organization, he carried out sabotage, made understated production plans and scattered funds for capital construction.

For sabotage purposes, he did not prepare a room for the equipment of the demolished plant. Dzerzhinsky to this day, medicines produced at the plant. Dzerzhinsky, such as: chvayakolovye drugs, iodide salts ‐ imported from abroad since 1934 (before that they were produced at the plant named after Dzerzhinsky). He deliberately closed the dressing materials factory, which caused an annual shortage of 4,000,000 individual dressing bags for the Red Army. During the production, he created the conditions for increasing marriage of a number of essential medicines, such as: salvarsan (the percentage of marriage is 78% monthly) and a friend. NISSENMAN named seven members of the organization known to him, of whom 5 were arrested.

5. BOSHKOVICH, aka FILIPPOVICH Philip Vasilievich, before his arrest worked as a responsible assistant of the International Agrarian Institute. Interrogated: MIRKIN.

He confessed that for a number of years he had been carrying out active counter‐revolutionary Trotskyist work. Since 1929, he was an active member of the anti‐Soviet Trotskyist organization and the Communist Party of Yugoslavia, into which he was recruited by an employee of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia NIKODISOV (who is abroad). On the instructions of this organization, in 1932 he arrived in the USSR under the guise of a party worker and established contact with an anti‐Soviet organization in the Comintern.

While working at the International Agrarian Institute, at the Lenin School and at the KUMZ, he was engaged in the propaganda of Trotskyism, preparing his listeners for recruiting into an anti‐Soviet organization.

BOSHKOVICH was an accomplice in a number of failures of underground workers, who were subsequently shot by the Yugoslav police.

For the 5th DEPARTMENT

1. VERKHOVSKY AI, former minister of the Provisional Government, before his arrest, professor at the Academy of the General Staff of the Red Army, brigade commander. Interrogated: LORKISH, ELS.

He gave initial testimony that from 1917 until the day of his arrest he was a member of an underground Socialist‐Revolutionary organization.

For the first time, VERKHOVSKY joined the Socialist‐Revolutionaries in 1917 and was associated with the members of the Central Committee of the Socialist‐Revolutionaries GOTS, DONSKY, HERTZENSHTEIN, being their consultant on military issues.

In December 1917, together with HERTZENSHTEIN VERKHOVSKY, the Central Committee of the Social Revolutionaries was sent to Kiev to negotiate with PETLYURA on organizing an uprising in Ukraine.

In January 1918, returning to Petrograd, VERKHOVSKY, in contact with the Central Committee of the Socialist‐Revolutionaries, is actively working to prepare an uprising in Petrograd, but this candidate. the activity is interrupted by the arrest of VERKHOVSKY.

In 1918‐1919. on the instructions of a member of the Central Committee of the Socialist‐Revolutionaries Viktor CHERNOV, VERKHOVSKY enters the Red Army for subversive work with the assignment of retaining the Socialist‐Revolutionary and officer personnel in the Red Army.

In 1922, Verkhovsky and a member of the Central Committee of the Socialist‐Revolutionaries FATE, according to the directive of the Central Committee of the Socialist‐Revolutionaries, act as witnesses at the Socialist‐Revolutionary process in order to deflect suspicion from themselves and earn the confidence of the Soviet government.

For subversive work in the Red Army, VERKHOVSKY was associated with members of the Socialist‐Revolutionary organization BELOV, FISHMAN and MIKULIN (all arrested).

At the Frunze VERKHOVSKY Military Academy, an SR group was created from former officers ‐ teachers of the academy, which aimed to amass personnel in case of an uprising. This group included: VYSOVSKY (arrested), BALTISKY, LIGNAU and others (not arrested).

The Social Revolutionary Center in Moscow received all the directives and instructions from the foreign center represented by KERENSKY and Viktor CHERNOV through people specially sent to the USSR.

2. NS BEREZIN, former deputy. Chairman of the State Bank, before that he worked in the CPC. Interrogated: ROGACHEV.

He additionally testified that after his appointment to the KSK he was contacted by N. V. KUIBYSHEV, who knew about BEREZINʹs participation in the Trotskyist organization from GAMARNIK.

KUIBYSHEV told BEREZIN that he was directly related to TUKHACHEVSKY, with whom, in addition to everything, he was connected by a long‐term personal friendship even from joint studies at the Alexander Military School. On instructions from TUKHACHEVSKY, KUIBYSHEV exerts influence and connection of the military conspiracy (of Tukhachevskyʹs group) with the organization in the defense industry. In particular, KUIBYSHEV was associated with PAVLUNOVSKY and the former head of the GUAP [1] KOROLEV (arrested). Of the members of the organization in the military industry, KUIBYSHEV told him:

1) HAHANYAN (arrested);

2) ISAEV ‐ Deputy KUIBYSHEV for Sovkontrol;

3) POBEREZHSKY ‐ director of the plant number 26 in Rybinsk

(arrested);

4) MARYAMOVA ‐ Director of Plant No. 24 in Moscow;

5) MITKEVICH ‐ Director of Plant No. 22 in Moscow;

6) PETROVSKY ‐ former director of CIAM (Central Institute of Aircraft

Engineering);

7) KOVROVA ‐ director of plant number 1 (died);

8) MIROSHNIKOVA ‐ director of plant number 21 in Gorky (arrested).

The participants in the conspiracy were assigned the following tasks in the aviation industry:

creating a gap and imbalance in the technological process, in the capacity and production capabilities of individual workshops, cooperative plants, etc..;

conducting subversive work and disrupting the supply of new materiel to the army;

launch and serial production of incomplete and defective types of vehicles and the creation of sabotage groups in case of war.

Subsequently, Berezin personally established contact with MARYAMOV (arrested), POBEREZHSKY (arrested), MIROSHNIKOV (arrested), with whom he jointly developed a plan and methods of subversive work at the factories.

Regarding plant No. 24, MARYAMOV informed BEREZIN that, together with his deputy, technical director KOLOSOV (arrested), they deliberately gloss over a number of major design flaws in the M‐34 engine. Under the guise of rationalizing production, simplifying the technological process, the quality of the motor deteriorated and its strength decreased.

This sabotage was also carried out by: designer DILIZHAL (to be established), engineers SUDAKOV (convicted) and BRANDT (to be established).

The construction of the new plant was carried out sabotage. A disproportion was created in the plant plan. The foundry was designed in such a way that its production capacity for wartime would be clearly insufficient and would slow down all production.

Later, in connection with the production of foreign motors WrightCyclone (M‐25), Hispano‐Suiza (M‐100) and Gnome‐Ron (M‐85), MARYAMOV tried in every possible way to prove the superiority of the M‐34 engine and disrupt production. foreign motors.

In order to push the defective products into parts, MARYAMOV made an agreement with the military representative of the Air Force ROGOVY (arrested), who accepted these products.

POBEREZHSKY succeeded in bringing together a number of

Trotskyists to plant No. 19 in Perm. With their help, as well as with the participation of the former head of CIAM PETROVSKY (arrested), the production of Wright‐Cyclone motors was delayed for 2 years and by the time of their mass production the motors were already morally obsolete and lagged behind the same motors that were produced by the Kertno company by that time ‐wright who sold us technical assistance. The motors were produced with major manufacturing defects. For their acceptance, V.M. PRIMAKOV was specially appointed to the plant as a military representative from the Air Force. (convicted ‐ brother of the executed PRIMAKOV), a member of an organization in industry.

At the same plant, POBEREZHSKY and the engineer TATKO (arrested) created a sabotage group.

For plant number 21 in Gorky, the director of the plant MIROSHNIKOV created a sabotage organization, which included the party organizer of the plant VARTANYAN (arrested), chief engineer USPASSKY (arrested), head of the assembly shop ABRAMOV (arrested) and others.

The wreckers thwarted the improvement of the I‐16 aircraft, tried to discredit it, built it in a sabotage manner, and blamed the designer POLIKARPOV for manufacturing defects.

According to special assignments by KOROLEV, the plant was built in a sabotage manner, as a result of which in 1934 the roof of one of the workshops collapsed and the roof of the main assembly workshop was threatened with collapse.

3. KALACHEV VP, former deputy of the General Staff of the NKMF, captain of the 1st rank. Interrogated: KUDRYAVTSEV.

KALACHEV, who had previously confessed to participation in the conspiracy, additionally testified that he knew from the conspirator, the former chief of staff of the Pacific Fleet Solonnikov (arrested), about the conspiratorsʹ connections with Japanese intelligence agencies. SOLONNIKOV said that the leadership of the conspiracy had agreed with the Japanese on the surrender of the Soviet part of Sakhalin to them and that for this purpose the defense construction in the DCK is carried out in such a way that the Japanese, after the occupation of the Soviet part of Sakhalin, install guns on it and block the exit of newly built ships from Komsomolsk along the Amur River estuary ... Since SOLONNIKOV, for reasons of conspiracy, did not name specific persons to him, a confrontation was made between KALACHEV and SOLONNIKOV, at which SOLONNIKOV confirmed everything, showing that OKUNEV, KIREEV, REBROV, KOTAMCHUK and TIKHONOV were associated with Japanese intelligence, that a participant in the conspiracy was the commander of the Amur military flotilla KODATSKY‐RUDNEV (the question of arrest was raised). In addition, SOLONNIKOV, confirming all the testimony of KALACHEV about subversive sabotage work at the Pacific Fleet, testified that this work was led by the participants in the conspiracy VICTOROV, KIREEV and OKUNEV.

4. KHOROSHILOV I.Ya., former deputy head of the Directorate for the commanding personnel of the Red Army. Interrogated: YUKHIMOVICH, RUBANOV.

KHOROSHILOV, who had previously confessed to his participation in the anti‐Soviet military conspiracy, additionally showed that he has been an agent of Polish intelligence since 1920, having been recruited by a resident of Polish intelligence, formerly. military commissar of the Smolensk command courses SHERINSKY, to whom he transferred spy materials about the units of the Smolensk garrison (SHERINSKY in 1936 was dismissed from the Red Army as a Trotskyist, we are installing).

On the instructions of SHERINSKY, KHOROSHILOV recruited a student for espionage work ‐ a graduate of the Kiev Engineering School CHERENOVICH (arrested), from whom he received espionage information about the units of the Kiev Military District, where CHERENOVICH served after graduation.

In 1925, KHOROSHILOV, being on advanced training courses for the top command personnel of the Red Army (KUVNAS), transmitted information about these courses to SHERINSKY until 1929. Then SHERINSKY gave KHOROSHILOV for communication to

KOKHANSKY (an active participant in the ʺPOVʺ and the militaryfascist conspiracy, arrested), with whom he was connected through an espionage line until 1937. Through KOKHANSKY KHOROSHILOV, he passed on to the Polish intelligence information about the units of the Volga Military District and OKDVA, where he commanded a division.

Working in recent years in the Directorate for the command personnel of the RKKA, KHOROSHILOV fulfilled the tasks of Kokhansky to preserve in the RKKA those who had graduated from the military school “Red Communards” in the past, in most Poles, participants of the “POV”.

5. STIGGA, former head of the RKKA Intelligence

Department. Interrogated by: YAMNITSKII, KAZAKEVICH.

In addition, he showed about the facts of communication and financing of foreign anti‐Soviet organizations by the leaders of the K.R. underground in the Intelligence Directorate of the Red Army.

STIGGA reveals that the former deputy. early RU RKKA ARTUZOV and ex. deputy. early INO OGPU GORB (participants in the anti‐Soviet military conspiracy ‐ convicted) attracted a certain SHTERN, an emigrant from the USSR, a former member of the Central Committee of the Mensheviks, as an agent of RU in Germany.

STIGGA knew from URITSKY and BERZIN (both arrested) that STERN was connected with the foreign delegation of Mensheviks and was carrying out their assignments in connection with the Mensheviks in the USSR.

Stern came to the USSR in 1936 under the pretext of the need for a personal meeting with ARTUZOV, to transfer funds through him for the Menshevik organization abroad and for communication with the Mensheviks in the USSR, an agreement was concluded with STERN and a certain white emigrant ALMATOV to search for a treasure somewhere near Moscow gold. This agreement was executed through the USSR State Bank.

ARTUZOV also tried, under the guise of giving bribes and purchasing drawings of military equipment in Germany, to transfer 20 thousand pounds sterling to STERN and then 1,200,000 marks. The arrests that had begun in the Intelligence Directorate cut this connection with STERN.

STIGGA informed the resident of German intelligence KREISER, who came to the USSR in 1937, about the involvement of Stern as an agent of the RU RKKA.

6. ANZIPO‐CHIKUNSKY, former naval attaché in

England. Interrogated by: PETROV.

ANZIPO‐CHIKUNSKY, who had previously confessed to participating in an anti‐Soviet military conspiracy and espionage in favor of Italy, additionally testified that in 1934 he handed over to the Italian admiral CHANO spy materials about the work of the Red Army military schools, which he had received from the former Namorsi ORLOV

(arrested).

At the same time, ANZIPO‐CHIKUNSKY received from CHANO the task of delaying the production of guns for cruisers, leaders and destroyers, as well as disrupting the production of torpedoes. This task was soon handed over to them for ORLOV.

In the fall of 1934, CHANO, through ANCIPO‐CHIKUNSKY, instructed ORLOV to ensure, through the appropriate authorities, the unimpeded entry into the Soviet Union of specialists from the Italian navy, sent by Italian intelligence under the guise of technical assistance. Subsequently, such a trip to the USSR of Italian specialists really took place and the seconded people worked for a considerable time in Leningrad at the Severnaya Verf.

Before leaving Italy in 1934, ANZIPO‐CHIKUNSKY received from CHANO and BERTOLDI a new task for ORLOV: to intensify the disruption of torpedo and mine production, anti‐aircraft artillery, to deploy sabotage in the production of torpedoes, submarines, to delay the production of ship turbines for cruisers, leaders and destroyers. ANCIPO‐CHIKUNSKY gave this task to ORLOV.

When meeting with ORLOV, the last ANCIPO‐CHIKUNSKY, in addition to the previously known participants in the conspiracy, named the following persons: the former deputy namorsi LUDRI, the former authorized shipbuilding department in Leningrad ALYAKRITSKY, the former military attaché in Italy LUNEVA‐PETRENKO and a number of others (all arrested).

In addition, ORLOV, having informed ANCIPO‐CHIKUNSKY about the subversive work he was carrying out in weapons and shipbuilding, instructed him to inform Italian intelligence about this, which he did when he returned to Italy in February 1935.

In the second half of 1935, ANTSIPO‐CHIKUNSKY, on behalf of ORLOV, connected with CHANO the engineer STRELTSOV who had arrived in Italy (arrested), who informed him about the ongoing sabotage in the fleet and handed over various spy materials.

ANCIPO‐CHIKUNSKYʹs communication with Italian intelligence continued until his departure to England.

In England ANZIPO‐CHIKUNSKY, on behalf of ORLOV, established espionage contact with the head of British naval intelligence, Admiral TRUPP.

7. CHERENOVICH S.Ya., former teacher of the Academy of the Red Army named after Frunze, Major. Interrogated: CHEKHOV, TAKE.

Gave initial testimony that he has been a Polish spy since 1923, having been recruited by the former commissar of the Kiev military engineering school KHOROSHILOV (arrested).

Cherenovich maintained espionage with Polish intelligence through KHOROSHILOV and BARBYSHEV, a former assistant to the chief of engineers of the UVO (not arrested), to whom he systematically passed on espionage materials about the Red Army and fortified areas.

On the instructions of KHOROSHILOV CHERENOVICH personally recruited the former assistant commandant of the mountains. Odessa KOVEZEVICH (arrested). For his espionage activities, Cherenovich received from Khoroshilov about 3,000 rubles.

8. YURS , head of department of the 4th department of the AMU RKKA, major. Interrogated: SOLOVIEV.

He confessed that he was a member of an anti‐Soviet military‐fascist conspiracy, into which he was recruited in March 1937 by a member of the conspiracy, the former head of the 4th department of the Administrative‐Mobilization Directorate of the RKKA SOLNTSEV

(arrested).

Informing YURSU about the existence of an anti‐Soviet military organization in the RKKA and its goals, Solntsev said that he had created a cell of this organization in the AMU of the RKKA, the work of which he, Solntsev, leads, and invited YURSU to participate in the organization. YURS agreed to participate in the organization.

Subsequently, Solntsev YURSU reported that the cell headed by him included ALUTYAN, WALTER, BAKAYEV (arrested) and that this cell was carrying out sabotage work to prepare the disruption of the mobilization, and gave YURSU a task to carry out sabotage work together with other participants.

9. GURVICH AI, former head of the research institute of communications technology of the RU RKKA. Interrogated: POLISCHUK.

GURVICH, who had previously confessed to espionage and participation in the anti‐Soviet military conspiracy, additionally testified that when recruiting into the conspiracy SINYAVSKY (arrested) named him as participants in the conspiracy AKSENOV ‐ the former head of the RKKA Communications Department (arrested), BOYEV ‐ the former chairman of Amtorg, and SYSLENTSEV ‐ the head of the engineering department of Amtorg (both were not arrested).

On the instructions of SINYAVSKY, GURVICH carried out the following sabotage at the institute:

1) the laboratories of the institute and the workshop were systematically loaded with the manufacture and repair of amateur and broadcasting equipment, which did not allow a wide range of experimental work and disrupted the experimental tasks of the institute;

2) the radio center built by him in 1935 was built in such a way that the 15‐kilowatt transmission station located on the territory of the institute interfered with the production of experimental work in the instituteʹs laboratories;

3) deliberately disrupted the construction of a powerful radio center of the RU RKKA, having accepted for this construction an obviously unusable project of the Khabarovsk radio station of the Peopleʹs Commissariat of Communications.

In 1936, before leaving the post of head of the institute, GURVICH, in agreement with SINYAVSKY, was recruited into a conspiracy by an employee of the RKKA, Trotskyist KOZHEVNIKOV (not arrested), who was later promoted to the post of head of the institute.

10. LIPELIS DE, former head of the House of Aviation and Chemistry at the Central Council of Osoaviakhim. Interrogated: NIKONOV, DERGACHEV.

He additionally testified that, as a member of the underground Left Socialist‐Revolutionary (struggle) organization, in 1933 he was involved in an anti‐Soviet military conspiracy by the chairman of the Central Transport Council Osoaviakhim LEPPE (convicted).

As deputy chairman of the Central Transport Council of Osoaviakhim, D.E. LIPELIS carried out sabotage work, especially in the shooting business (he selected an unsuitable site for a shooting range located 80 km from Moscow, liquidated two mobile shooting schools, slowed down the transition to shooting training from combat rifles, etc.).

On his instructions, gliding instructors were deliberately released from the gliding school as unprepared glider instructors.

D.E. LIPELIS a number of recruits into an anti‐Soviet military conspiracy were carried out.

Head of the Secretariat of the NKVD of the USSR, Senior Major of State Security (SHAPIRO)

[1] General Directorate of the Aviation Industry.