506 The Billion-Dollar Spy: Tolkachev and the Major US-Soviet Intelligence Cases of the Late Cold War
In the late 1970s, US-Soviet relations, which had experienced a period of détente, became tense again, with military competition and intelligence rivalry between the two sides continuing to escalate. Soviet electronics engineer Tolkachev continuously provided intelligence to the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) between 1979 and 1985. The Soviet military-industrial secrets he leaked were worth a fortune, earning him the title of the "Billion-Dollar Spy." Why did the new round of US-Soviet military competition make Soviet military-industrial intelligence so important? In the Cold War era, when it was difficult to distinguish between genuine and fake defectors, how did Tolkachev gradually gain the trust of the CIA? How did the two sides complete 21 street meetings in Moscow under the surveillance of the KGB? How did the leak by a former CIA intelligence officer lead to the exposure of Tolkachev's identity? Please listen to this episode's guest, Sha Qingqing, for an insightful sharing!
Original Chinese title & description
506 亿万美元间谍：托卡契夫与冷战晚期美苏情报大案
20世纪70年代末，经历了一段缓和期的美苏关系再度紧张，双方军事竞争与情报较量持续升级。苏联电子工程师托卡契夫在1979年至1985年间持续向美国中央情报局提供情报，其泄露的苏联军工机密价值连城，也因此有了「亿万美元间谍」之称。美苏新一轮军事竞争为何让苏联军工情报变得如此重要？在真假叛逃者难辨的冷战年代，托卡契夫如何一步步获得中央情报局的信赖？双方又如何在克格勃的监视下完成21次莫斯科街头接头？前CIA情报人员的泄密又如何导致托卡契夫身份暴露？请听本期嘉宾沙青青带来的精彩分享！
Participation credit “本期话题成员”：沙青青（微信公众号：13号埋立地）。
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