SPY RING INVESTIGATORS TOLD RUSSIA PREPARING THIRD WORLD WAR

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 90, Issue 164, 17 July 1946, Page 5

SPY RING INVESTIGATORS TOLD RUSSIA PREPARING THIRD WORLD WAR

FIFTH COLUMN ACTIVITY IN CANADA’ Recd. 7 p.m. Ottawa. July 15. A Royal Commission set up to investigate and report upon Russian espionage in Canada, has just released its final report. lu this it is.stated that one of the witnesses examined (Gozenko) told the Commissioners that Russia wa.s preparing for i. third world war, and tlie Comintern continues to direct International Communism. He said only the name of the Comintern was liquidated in 1943 to reassure publie opinion of democratic countries. There was a file for every Communist throughout the world at the Comintern in Moscow. Gozenko added that tlie Soviet Ambassador, Georges Zaroubin, had no part in spying activities. He had not access to secret rooms on the special wing of the second floor of the Embassy, or to secret telegrams sent between Ottawa and Moscow by various heads of spying, whose operations were quite distinct from the Embassy’s official legitimate activities.

The Commission declared that Soviet operators sought and obtained top secret political information relating to British and American policies, as well as Canadian. It added “There exists in Canada a fifth column organised and directed by Russian agents in Canada and Russia. Also iu it are several spy rings, including an organisation to procure false Canadian passports.” Nine new names were added to the 14 previously published, but the commissioners said that without further documents they could not identify any additional non-Russian members of the ring. The report said that Colonel Nicolai Zabotin, former military attache at the Russian Embassy, helped to supervise and finance the organisation of agents operating in European countries.

POWERFUL SECRET POLICE ORGANISATION

"There can be little doubt that the secret Russian police have a powerful organisation in cc...ada, also that several parallel undercover systems or networks existed under the direction of members of the Soviet Embassy, and they may still have agents operating in Canada,” the report continued. “There is some evidence of a naval system of intelligence oeing organised. Goussarov, wno was second secretary at the Soviet Embassy, directed a secret political system which acted as a pilot for Communist activities.

The commissioners said that political information obtained by the ling came from agents in tlie External Allairs Department cipher division and the United Kingdom High Commissioner's Oilice.

Evidence showed that the Communist Party tried to get control through the election of secret members to the directing committees of as many types of functional organisations as possible, including trade unions, professional associations, youth movements and civil liberty unions, such secret membership being calculated to facilitate essentially dishonest but not ineffective propaganda methods in tlie interests of a foreign State. An additional objective was to accustom young Canadians to. an atmosphere of conspiracy, double life and double standards.

The report said it was obvious that there was an intended large-scale post-war expansion of the Zabotin network, and pointed out that the most startling single aspect was the uncanny success with which Soviet agents found Canadians who were willing to betray their country. The report said that as early as 1924, the organisation's work in Canada, directed from Russia, was operat-

ing with Communist sympathisers in Canada. Two of the most active agents were Rose and Carr, the former born in Poland and the latter in the Ukraine. The organisation 'began to be re-formed with the arrival in Ottawa in 1942 of Major Sokolov, who came ostensibly to work in Canadian factories under the mutual aid programme to Russia. Zabotin took over the military intelligence system in 1943, with a steadily increasing Russian staff. He immediately expanded the organisation. Canadian secret Communists were instructed when necessary to assume temporarily an anti-Communist line.. Gozenko told the commissioners it was clear that Communists in democratic countries had 'changed long ago from a political party into an agency of the Soviet Government, to act as an instrument in the hands of the Soviet Government for creating unrest, provocations, etc. The evidence showed that on one occasion in 1944, Zabotin caused .10,000 dollars to be transferred with the aid of a commercial firm in New York and a secret agent in Canada to the European network.

The commissioners said the documents vividly illustrated the care taken by "The Director” in Moscow to keep Zabotin’s activities secret from Zaroubin.

Gozenko testified that before coming to Canada in 1943 he worked for a year directly under the director in Moscow, Where he enciphered and deciphered telegrams to and from many countries, disclosing th" use of local Communist parties for espionage purposes in networks generally similar to those in Canada.

The commissioners reported that Zabotin enlisted Carr's help to plant agents >udo-Canadians in Canada and other countries, for which purpose forged passports and other documents would be used. Carr worked for the Russian secret police when 17 and, apnarcnH" reported to his masters on a secret session of Parliament on November 11, 1944. The" added that Carr cannot be found in Canada to sub r '"»na in connection with the c-'ionage trials. The report said that secret and valuable information transmitted included much vital technical data. The bulk of the technical information sought concerned research developments wh’"h would be important to post-war defences of Canada, Britain and America.

The commission recommended that certain secret technical data introduced among the evidence of 116 witnesses and 1000 exhibits be kept secret from the public. It urged that Canada’s security measures be coordinated and strengthened to prevent agents infilterating position! of trust under the Government. It further recomfnended revision of the consideration procedure in coh|iieetion with the issue of passports and naturalisation birth certificates. The report consisted of 250,000 words ano was tabled in the House of Commons.