Deception in War – I

Numerous boats are charging towards Omaha beach in Normandy. Each boat contains 20-30 soldiers. On one of the boats is Captain J H Miller, in-charge of the platoon, his hands are shaking but he keeps the morale of his platoon high. As they approach the beach they face artillery fire. Many die under this heavy blow but many others continued to move on. This is the opening scene in ‘Saving Private Ryan’ which shows Normandy invasion by Allied troops during World War II. The invasion was a successful one, but a great part in its victorious execution lies in the extreme network of deception laid out by the Allied powers.

Deception as a war strategy is used by forces when facing their belligerents from a very long time. This series of blog posts will deal with deception in war, how one army tricked another and used this advantage to emerge victorious.

Let’s start the blog with a few quotes by Sun Tzu (a Chinese General and military strategist), author of Art of War, regarding deception.

Sun Tzu’s Art Of War is considered as a definitive  work on military strategy and tactics  

“All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when we are able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must appear inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near.”

“Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak.”

A little background

After Dunkirk evacuation (watch out for Christopher Nolan’s film Dunkirk), in which Britain had to call back BEF (British Expeditionary Forces) from France beaches, this had significantly lowered the confidence of Britain in planning any direct attack on Europe where Hitler had stronghold. In short, they feared to challenge Hitler in Europe, and Hitler had virtually created a ‘Fortress Europe’ which Britain believed was almost impossible to invade.

But gradually, America and British reached a common agreement that in order to weaken Hitler they had to attack his ‘Fortress Europe’. The gist of the plan was deception, not letting Germany know from where they are going to attack, at what time and in what numbers. This was essential because Germany already had a firm position in Europe, having knowledge of attack from Allied powers, they would concentrate all their resources towards it and will be successful in driving them away.

Many historians agree that Normandy invasion wouldn’t have been a successful one if deception wasn’t used correctly.

Comparison

Above graph depicts the strength and casualties of armies on both sides. Germany lost about 28% of its army whereas Allied troops lost only 9%. Germany was a formidable force during World War II, the casualties on both sides were almost same in number but due to deception tactics Germany employed far less force providing an edge to the Allied troops.

The Operation

Codenamed ‘Bodyguard’, Allies developed an intricate plan, of what is now known as the greatest deception operations in war history. The idea was to confuse the Germans about the destination of invasion and the strength of the armies. The plan was divided into two parts- Fortitude South and Fortitude North

German forces believed that the attack from Allied powers could either come from Normandy or Pas de Calais as mentioned in the map below. Allied powers chose Normandy over Pas de Calais mainly because of two reasons – Pas de Calais was the location for launch of rockets, Germans could easily target incoming offensive and it was a heavily fortified region bounded by numerous rives and canals.

The two areas where allied troops were planning an invasion

Fortitude North was planned to persuade the German High command that a diversionary attack on Norway was planned using forces stationed in Scotland.

Fortitude South was designed to make it appear that the major invasion force was stationed in southeast England ready to attack through Pas de Calais.

Fortitude North was least likely to succeed over Fortitude South as Hitler was always worried about an invasion through Norway and kept a large garrison there. Much rested on the success of Fortitude South.

The green arrow shows the “fake” attack points, Allied powers that they wanted the Germans to believe. The black concentric circle denote the real point of the attack.

A phantom army

A bogus army was created under the name First United States Army group (FUSAG). Allied powers wanted to convince Germans that FUSAG was created just for the attack on Pas de Calais. To facilitate the deception, dummy aircrafts and tanks were created (made from wood and fabric). The photographs of these slipped through German intelligence as Allied powers wanted it to be, and Germans became more and more convinced that attack on Pas de Calais was imminent. Although Germans had tracked Allied troops movement in Normandy but information through double agents convinced them that Normandy would a diversionary attack and real attack will be through Pas de Calais.

The image above shows a dummy tank created which could be easily lifted by soldiers.

The dotted lines shows the fake invasion plans led by the imaginary FUSAG group. The real attack was led by the 21st army group on Normandy denoted by black arrow.

A web of deceit

Trail of misinformation being fed to Germans wasn’t an easy task. Double agents were extremely crucial at this point of time. Fake radio traffic was being intercepted by Germans which re-inforced their deception plan.

Juan Pujol Garcia was one of the double agents. He created a network of 27 agents to feed false information to the Germans. Contrarily he was awarded both Iron Cross and MBE, highest honor from both Britain and Germany.

‘Eye of the Needle’ book by Ken Follet is a great read on this topic. A fictional spy thriller, the books account the details of a spy in Operation Fortitude

Cold War – Unrest among the Reds

:: This is part five in the Cold War Series. Click for previous parts Part 1 , Part 2, Part3, Part 4. Keep following the blog to know about Cold War as it happened

Communism was starting to fall apart. What Karl Marx preached and wrote in his book The Communist Manifesto was not all implemented practically.

A look at the Soviet sphere of influence. Reds denote Soviet satellite states and the overall Soviet Empire.

A war of theories

Cold War was a war of ideologies. It was a war of propaganda. It was a war of whose system is better.  As history dictates communism had mostly led to an authoritarian government. Paradoxically countries who said they were communist were infact not communist, if going by Karl Marx standards. Stalin created a God like personality for himself in USSR and purged any opposition. So much so was the fear that even after the end of World War II, the Soviet prisoners of war in Germany refused to go to their homeland to face the wrath of Stalin and preferred death at German concentration camps. Stalin tried to instill same fear in satellite states and was successful.

America needed to demonstrate that their system was better. They needed to show that people would have greater freedom and capitalist system would stand the test of time. To combat communist influence America had come up with a plan. The plan was to revive economies of Western Germany and Japan so as to secure the future of capitalism in these countries and make them democratic.

It is now easy to see why capitalist system worked and communism did not. But back in the days it was convoluted. Why so? Let’s look at Soviet Union. Battered and devastated by World War II, it still remained a superpower. Torn out yet powerful. Within a year or so after America, they were able to develop atomic bombs. On the other hand USA was least affected by the war. The Great Depression of 1929 in the US had planted doubts into the minds of people regarding the future of capitalism. So there wasn’t an easy distinction on which system was better and which one will be used in future.

March 1953, Stalin dies. Speculation arose as to who will be his successor. Among four prospectus candidates, Nikita Khrushchev emerged as the winner. America also had new leadership with Dwight Eisenhower as the President.

Nikita Khrushchev tried to overcome the terror of Stalin. He freed thousands of political prisoners from gulag (concentration camps).  He exposed the cruelty of Stalin through his speech which thousands of Russians were unaware of and treated him God-like.  The speech was a nucleus for de-stalinization process which was carried out by him in the next few years.

Satellites uprising

East Germany came under the control of Walter Ulbricht, a staunch Stalin supporter, he mirrored Stalin repression tactics in the East. He initiated a plan of re-developing the East by rapid industrialization.  This required the workers to work relentlessly and also neglecting their way of living. The living standards were dropped down and everything was rationed. This led to the deflection of thousands of people from East to West. Anger among the crowd grew and people took to streets. Soviet command ordered Red Army to take control of the situation.

The above image shows Nikita Khrushchev (left) with Walter Ulbricht, communist leader of East Germany (right).

Following protests in East Germany and Khrushchev’s speech, Communist party in Poland began releasing political prisoners and removing Stalinists in power. This was all done under the leadership of Władysław Gomułka. Gomulka was a victim of Stalin purges and became the de-facto leader of Poland. This angered Khrushchev and he went to Poland to show who the boss is. But after much negotiations Gomulka regained power in Poland and at the same time complying with Khrushchev demands of being loyal to Moscow.

Hungarian rebellion

Under Soviet Union influence, Stalin installed Matayas Rakosi to head matters in Hungary. Much like Stalin, his puppets were alike. From Ulbricht to Rakosi, their ruthless nature were no different from one another. Khruschev disliked Rakosi and ordered his dismissal. Hungarian people now sought a leader which was more independent from Moscow and understood their plight and problem. Imre Nagy emerged out of popular public support. The rebels lion groups ordered Soviet expulsion from Hungary and freedom to their country on all matters from Soviets. People wanted their country to be free in every aspect. Clashes began between the Red Army and Hungarian protesters in Budapest. Slowly Khrushchev began to believe that Hungary should be given autonomy and ordered Red Army withdrawal.

TIME magazine named Hungarian freedom fighter as the man of the year. Rebel groups rode their national flags with symbol of communism (hammer and sickle) torn off to show defiance to Soviet Union. The flag can be seen in the background.

But then Mao Zedong pressurized Khrushchev to re-send Red Army troops and preserve Hungary under Soviet influence.  Khrushchev complied.  This time Imre Nagy sought help from the western powers. But US and other nations didn’t reach out to their help. Why? Because if America intervened in matters regarding one satellite state then others would place similar demands. This would mean America’s intervention in all countries coming under Soviet sphere of influence which would be definitely a trigger for World War III. Thousands of rebels were killed and Imre Nagy was executed.

The above cartoon shows Nikita Khrushchev with hammer and sickle in his hand trying to suppress the Hungarian revolution, while the UN as a mere spectator offering no military support but sympathy.

Imre Nagy  who led the Hungarian revolution was seen by many as a formidable freedom fighter.  Nikita Khrushchev had Nagy executed, “as a lesson to all other leaders in socialist countries”. Western democracies saw his death as “an episode of unparalleled infamy”.

Above episodes of Soviet controlled satellite countries can be seen as fall of communism and rise of anger among the people in these countries to achieve a democratic government which will give them more freedom. Although Soviet Union had controlled the uprising but these events implanted a seed in people’s minds of what communism and capitalism had to offer.

Cold War – ‘Hot’ War in Asia

:: This is part four in the Cold War Series. Click for previous parts Part 1 , Part 2, Part3. Keep following the blog to know about Cold War as it happened

Besides a lot going on in Europe during Cold War Era, Asia wasn’t far behind. There was a term called domino theory being talked about during these years – It primarily said if one country fell under the influence of communism, neighboring countries would follow the trend and eventually world would fall under communism.

Domino theory was also one of the reasons in shaping US foreign policy. The above image shows hand (denoting Soviet Union) titling one domino (Laos, which had communist regime) which would eventually topple other dominos (countries).

China: Mao rises to power

Before and after World War II, there was occurrence of civil war in China between Chinese Nationalists and Chinese Communists. Communists won under Mao Zedong. Now the question arose in American officials’ mind. Will China fall under Soviet leadership? Or will it follow Tito’s example and be independent(See part 3)? They were skeptical and waited until Mao took some decision. Eventually Mao decided to join Stalin. This was a big blow to America as suddenly one of the biggest country in Asia fell under communism and much worse under Soviet hands. What motivated Mao to take this step despite the fact that Chinese Communists had won the civil war all by themselves with little help from the Soviet Union?

First was Mao’s deep belief in Marxist-Leninist ideology. He was heavily inspired by the Bolshevik revolution led by Lenin. He thought of allying all the countries under one communist umbrella. Mao said, “with the Soviet Union..and with the proletariat and broad masses in all other countries and form an united international front. We must lean to one side”

Secondly, Mao was envious of the US. US had supported Chinese nationalists during the civil war. Mao became suspicious that US might enter into China to help their nationalists ally. But eventually US did no such thing.

China needed peace and war- free country so that it could boost its economy. For this they needed Soviet Union’s aid, as they couldn’t ask it from the US.

Here is the link of conversations between Mao and Stalin during 1949 – http://china.usc.edu/conversation-between-soviet-unions-joseph-stalin-and-chinas-mao-zedong-1949

Mao, dictator of China, came under the league of Hitler and Stalin as being the most ruthless. Under his regime there were an estimate 40 to 70 million deaths through starvation, forced labour and executions, ranking his tenure as the top incidence of democide in human history.

North versus South

For the first time Cold War became Hot, arms and ammunition were gathered and full scale fighting was taking place in Korea. Let’s find out the origin on why did the war happened.

Korea was occupied by Japanese from 1910, but in World War II Japan was defeated and suddenly Korea became free from the foothold of Japan. But that did not remain for long as Allied nation winners occupied Korea, and like Germany, Korea was divided into two zones one occupied by Soviet Union and the other by the US. Both agreed to mind their own business along the 38^th parallel.

Division of Korea along the 38^th parallel. The red area occupied by Soviets while the green was occupied by the US.

North Korea became a communist state under the leadership of Kim Il-Sung while the South backed by US came under Syngman Rhee. Both the leaders had one goal – to unify Korea under their administration. To achieve their goals they sought help from their respective allies. America refused to station their army in South Korea as it might drag them into another war which they didn’t want. On the counterpart Kim Il-Sung repeatedly sought support from Moscow in his campaign to unify Korea. Stalin preoccupied with matters in Berlin and in elsewhere Europe, stalled Kim but eventually gave him the nod to carry out his plan. January 1950, North invades South.

The above image shows two leaders during the Korean War. Syngman Rhee (left) and Kim Il- Sung (right). Both leaders committed atrocities on prisoners of war of either side.

What Soviet leaders did not anticipate was America’s participation in the war. America had previously not helped Chinese nationalists in their war against communist so Soviets believed America was least likely to involve themselves in Asian matters.

Why did America intervene?

US President Harry Truman presented to the world the “Truman Doctrine” which was as quoted, “set a precedent for American assistance to anticommunist regimes throughout the world, no matter how undemocratic, and for the creation of a set of global military alliances directed against the Soviet Union.” More generally, the Truman doctrine implied American support for other nations threatened by Soviet communism. So partly defined by Truman Doctrine and partly to conserve its world dominance, America backed South Korea.

New York Times Front edition featuring the Truman speech which established the Truman doctrine.

If they helped South Korea, then why they didn’t help Chinese Nationalists in civil war and drive out communists from China and prevent China to become a communist state according to Truman Doctrine? The reasons was Chinese Nationalists were itself incompetent and corrupt and that the arms and support given to them more often would wound up in the hands of the communists. Even if they formed government it would be a very unstable one. At least Chinese communists had a strong leadership to guide them.

Moreover it was a blatant opposition to UN (United Nations). UN had sanctioned the boundary along 38^th parallel. If one would remember World War II had started when Hitler openly refused warnings from Britain and France and went on to occupy Poland. The structure of UN was created to avoid these kinds of circumstances. But the invasion boldly defied it.  It wasn’t after much time that UN decided to send forces into South Korea.

Korean War was the first case of proxy war in the Cold War Era which involved heavy fighting that led to the death of 2.5 million people.

China comes into picture

Before US participated in the war, North Korea entered South and went as far as capturing Seoul (South’s capital). As soon as UN forces, primarily Americans, joined the war, North Koreans were pushed back. UN forces were comparably strong as it was formed of World War II veterans. They drew back North Korean Army as far back as Pyongyang (North’s capital). Problem started to arise when they reached Yalu River (China-North Korean border).

China decided to send in forces to help North. What was the motivation behind it? What was Mao thinking?

Points in the above image indicates the course of the war.

America had reached the border. Mao already with anti-American thinking in his mind grew paranoid over the thought that Americans were just right around the corner. America might grow ambitious and enter China or even if they didn’t enter, skirmishes were bound to happen between them over the years. The idea of having America as neighbors gripped Mao with fear.

Chinese and American forces met at Yalu River. Chinese army unconventional tactics pushed back American troops.

During 1900’s China was considered as the underdog of Asia. Initially it was under the repression of Japanese and later civil war marked an era of economic chaos, hunger and savagery. Chinese involvement in Korean War was in part to show the world what the Chinese are capable of. It was no longer the underdog.

After much fighting, an armistice was signed in 1953 and borders drawn then haven’t much changed till present.

The above image shows the 38^th parallel border between South and North Korea in present day.  Several tunnels were built as an invasion route by North Koreans to enter into South.

 

Cold War – Which side are you on?

:: This is part three in the Cold War Series. Click for previous parts Part 1 and Part 2. Keep following the blog to know about Cold War as it happened.

To recovery: Marshall Plan

As much harsh the war-time conditions were, much harsher was the post-war scenario. Europe was bankrupt, homes lay in ruble, and people were struggling to survive. There was widespread hunger and starvation. The word communism then had a fancy definition to the people. Communism talked of an ideal society, a classless society. Although communism was much more polarizing in nature as we know today.  Imagine a youth living in post World War II European country, idea of communism will appeal to him more strongly than that of capitalism. If nothing was done to re-construct Europe, public unrest will begin increasing and there was a higher chance that communist movement would take control, that’s what Stalin wanted. Considering these factors, US came up with Marshall Plan. The plan was to rebuild devastated Western Europe and in a way to make people realize what good capitalism can bring and in the process reduce Soviet influence. In my opinion, Germany wouldn’t have a prosperous and stable economy today if it weren’t for the US to execute their Marshall Plan. Stalin of course didn’t agree with this plan and in retaliation issued Berlin blockade (not Berlin Wall to be clear).

Above is a nice cartoon depicting condition in Europe. Stalin controlled states were miserable and suffered as much as the people in Russia suffered under his rule. On the other hand Marshall Plan initiated by the US was highly advantageous and those who received grew prosperous. The fat guy with star on his chest portrays Stalin.

Stalin trying to dodge the ‘Marshall Plan’ ball from getting into the ‘European recovery’ basket.

Berlin: The ‘boiling’ ground

As discussed earlier, Germany was divided into West (US, Britain influence) and East (Soviet influence), even the capital Berlin was divided into occupation zones by the victors of World War II.

Division of Germany and Berlin into occupation zones, both Germany and the capital was divided among the allies. Red- Soviets, light blue -US, white – Britain, blue – France. 

The Allies introduced a new currency to be circulated in Germany which was fast becoming popular, Soviets were infuriated by this. Soviet Union in response blocked all routes (including sea, railways and canals) from West Germany to West Berlin. This move by Stalin was to force Allied nations out their sector zones and Berlin would be claimed by him. In lieu of Marshall Plan huge amount of aid was being given to West Berlin by the Allies but after the blockade, that stopped. Berliners perished. Allies had to act fast because maneuvers like these by Soviets will diminish their influence in Germany. A Berlin airlift was planned which supplied almost 8000 tons of necessity like food and fuel to West Berliners, and almost 200,000 flights like these made during 1948. Stalin’s blockade idea backfired heavily as Berlin airlift move was met by much enthusiasm and appreciation by people not only in Berlin but worldwide.

The Soviet Union represented by bear engulfing the occupation zones held by US , Britain and France

Two sides were being set up with countries shifting to either side. Soviet Union announced formation of a communist front called Cominform. The aim of it was to organize all the international communist movements under the leadership of Stalin. US on the other hand led the formation of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) wherein the member nations agreed to mutual defense in-case of an external attack.

Above cartoon tries to put an analogy of  politics during cold war era to a chess game. On the right we have US president Harry Truman and on the left we have Stalin. The pieces which Stalin posses are Eastern bloc (Soviet controlled satellite states) and Berlin blockade. While Truman has Airlift and Atlantic treaty (NATO) as his chess pieces. 

Yugoslavian defiance

Let’s look at the case of Yugoslavia during this time. During World War II Yugoslavia was held by Axis but under leadership of Josef Briz Tito they were driven out with a little help from the Red Army. Tito and Stalin had friendly relations at that time. After establishment of cominform by Stalin, he urged Yugoslavia to join the organization. Tito reluctant to accept the offer found it difficult to accept Stalin as the central power for communist parties. Tito’s national pride and refusal to submit to Stalin’s will made him a popular figure worldwide. Stalin with his never ending pride said, “I will shake my little finger and there will be no more Tito”. But he was unable to take any action against Tito.

Tito was seen by most as the benevolent dictator. He was the first president of Yugoslavia and also the chief leader of Non – Aligned Movement, of which India was an integral part. NAM members didn’t align themselves with either of the superpowers.

:: Espionage story

George Koval was a Soviet intelligence officer who resided in America. Koval’s infiltration of the Manhattan Project (America’s atomic bomb project) as a Soviet agent “drastically reduced the amount of time it took for Russia to develop nuclear weapons.” It was thanks to him that Soviet were able to build nuclear weapons so quickly, hadn’t been for him, Soviet had to start from scratch and would have taken longer time.

Next blog post: Korean war

Cold War – Iron Curtain falls

:: This is part two in the Cold War Series. For part one click here. Keep following the blog to know about Cold War as it happened.

Yes there was animosity among Russia and the Allied nations but what ignited it to such an extent that it came close to being a full-blown out war. Following events strengthened Allied nations distrust towards Soviet Union.

Genesis of Cold War

It was agreed upon at the Yalta Conference by the Big Three that the countries which were under control of Nazi Germany amidst World War II would get a chance to hold free and fair elections and choose their own governments. Stalin agreed at Yalta but later took a different stance.  He installed Soviet puppet governments in these countries thereby acquiring unilateral control over Eastern Europe.

Countries like Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Eastern Germany, Romania and Yugoslavia (in skin color) became Soviet-controlled satellite states. Allied nations started to get worried at growing Soviet influence.

Germany after World War II was divided into occupation zones, each Allied power occupying one zone. US, Britain and France took 2/3^rd of Germany under their zone while Soviet Union got the remaining. As discussed in the previous blog, Stalin had a deep confidence in Marxist-Leninist ideology and he thought his occupation zone will serve as a “magnet” for the rest of the Germany to join Soviet Union zone of influence. He commented, “All of Germany will be ours eventually, that is, Soviet, communist”. In fact the opposite of this happened. Stalin reign of terror, which he carried out in Russia, was also imposed on eastern Germany.

Soviet soldiers at the German border. The sign post reads “That is it, damn Germany”. Red Army not only seized property and extracted reparations on an indiscriminate scale but also indulged in mass rape – almost 2 million women were raped during 1945-47. Throughout Cold War, East Germans had much less freedom and right to expression compared to their West counterparts.

The Atomic Bomb – US was the first to test its atomic bomb under Manhattan Project. However, Stalin knew everything about it and was not at all surprised when US tested its bomb in New Mexico desert. What surprised Stalin was when US attacked Japan with its atomic bomb. Testing and building atomic weapons was one thing but launching it on another country was totally a different thing. Stalin grew paranoid over this as US possessed an a-bomb but they didn’t.  Stalin quickly commanded its scientists to launch atomic bomb program, he said, “The balance has been destroyed, that cannot be”.

On 27 October 1945, Truman made a speech about US foreign policy, which outlined twelve key points. These included a promise that the US did not want any territory, and did not intend to go to war with any country, small or large. However, he also announced that the USA would be seeking defensive military bases, and that he did not intend to share the secrets of the atomic bomb with anybody. The speech alarmed the British, who saw it as increasing the tension between America and the Soviet Union, and also as an affront to the close diplomatic relationship between Britain and the United States. The above is a satirical cartoon with Harry Truman (US president, left) presenting 12 key points agenda to Clement Attlee (British PM, right) and Stalin (extreme right).

Iron Curtain, the political, military, and ideological barrier erected by Soviet Union after World War II to seal off itself and its dependent eastern and central European allies from open contact with the West and other non-communist area.

Two visions – US and Russia had two different visions for post war settlements.  Roosevelt envisaged a settlement in which he thought of a League of Nations like organization now known as United Nations which would ensure collective security organization and better economic integration. The idea was to build cohesive cooperation among nations so as to avoid World War II like situation. Stalin on the other hand envisioned a settlement in which his country’s security was protected and simultaneous domination of Europe. One was a multilateral vision incorporating interest of incompatible systems while the other vision assumed no such thing.

Why do Americans have adopted their policy of containing communism all over the world during Cold War? Some reasons were mentioned earlier but the defining moment was the “long telegram”.  George Kennan, an officer in American Embassy in Moscow wrote a 8000 word cable to Washington DC headquarters , which became the basis of US foreign policy towards Soviet Union throughout the Cold War. Some of the excerpts from the long telegram.

The above image is the starting page of the Long Telegram. The whole thing is divided into various subjects detailing out Soviet’s objective and its influence on US.

• Russia’s internal policy is to increase the strength of the Soviet State, i.e., Military-Industrialization, and Armed Forces. They are secretive to hide weaknesses from their enemies.
• The core of communist party officials work together, regardless of country.
  They act to deceive and fool. Everything is controlled by Moscow/Kremlin.
• When compared to the West, the Soviets are weaker. Their success will depend on how well the West can work together. We (The US) can influence this with our power.
• These conflicts are good for communists and will help advance their cause. The Russians have great leaders.

**For a complete content of what the telegram contained here is the link 

All the above factors strengthened the cause of Cold War which could have been avoided if the leaders of the wining countries had thought decisively.

:: Let me now indulge you in an interesting spy story. Every blog post will feature an interesting non-fictional story from the Cold War Era.

On August 4, 1945 a delegation from the Young Pioneer organization of the Soviet Union presented US ambassador to Russia with the Great Seal of United States which was bugged as an attempt to spy on US activities. It hung on US ambassador’s Moscow residence for 7 years until it was exposed on 1952. The bug was accidentally discovered by a British radio operator who overheard American conversations on an open radio channel as the Soviets were beaming radio waves at the ambassador’s office.

Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. (the U.S. ambassador to the U.N.) displays a wooden carving of the Great Seal of the United States. It contains the listening device planted there by the Soviet Union, which had given the carving to the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.