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Reagan Approved Plan to Sabotage Soviets
The New York Times ^
| February 27, 2004
| David E. Hoffman reviews "At the Abyss: An Insider's History of the Cold War"
Posted on 02/27/2004 12:47:11 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
Thomas C. Reed, a former Air Force secretary who was serving in the National Security Council at the time, describes the episode in "At the Abyss: An Insider's History of the Cold War," to be published next month by Ballantine Books.
............."In order to disrupt the Soviet gas supply, its hard currency earnings from the West, and the internal Russian economy, the pipeline software that was to run the pumps, turbines, and valves was programmed to go haywire, after a decent interval, to reset pump speeds and valve settings to produce pressures far beyond those acceptable to pipeline joints and welds," Reed writes.
"The result was the most monumental non-nuclear explosion and fire ever seen from space," he recalls, adding that U.S. satellites picked up the explosion. Reed said in an interview that the blast occurred in the summer of 1982.
"While there were no physical casualties from the pipeline explosion, there was significant damage to the Soviet economy," he writes. "Its ultimate bankruptcy, not a bloody battle or nuclear exchange, is what brought the Cold War to an end. In time the Soviets came to understand that they had been stealing bogus technology, but now what were they to do? By implication, every cell of the Soviet leviathan might be infected. They had no way of knowing which equipment was sound, which was bogus. All was suspect, which was the intended endgame for the entire operation."
Reed said he obtained CIA approval to publish details about the operation. The CIA learned of the full extent of the KGB's pursuit of Western technology in an intelligence operation known as the Farewell Dossier. Portions of the operation have been disclosed earlier, including in a 1996 paper in Studies in Intelligence, a CIA journal. The paper was written by Gus W. Weiss, an expert on technology and intelligence who was instrumental in devising the plan to send the flawed materials and served with Reed on the National Security Council. Weiss died Nov. 25 at 72........
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
TOPICS: Business/Economy; Editorial; Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events; Russia
KEYWORDS: attheabyss; bookreview; cia; coldwar; communism; reagan; ussr
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Paul Schweizer's books Victory (1994) and Reagan's War (2002) are very good on this subject.
CORRECTION: This is a Washington Post story.
To: Cincinatus' Wife
Democrats are outraged.
Qwinn
3
posted on
02/27/2004 12:49:04 AM PST
by
Qwinn
To: Cincinatus' Wife
Gotta love the Gipper. :-)
4
posted on
02/27/2004 12:49:59 AM PST
by
Bonaparte
To: All
[Boston Globe] US let Soviets obtain faulty technology, book says
WASHINGTON -- In January 1982, President Ronald Reagan approved a CIA plan to sabotage the economy of the Soviet Union through covert transfers of technology that contained hidden malfunctions, including software that later triggered a huge explosion in a Siberian natural gas pipeline, according to a new memoir by a Reagan White House official.
Thomas C. Reed, a former Air Force secretary who was serving in the National Security Council at the time, describes the episode in "At the Abyss: An Insider's History of the Cold War," to be published next month by Ballantine Books. Reed writes that the pipeline explosion was just one example of "cold-eyed economic warfare" against the Soviet Union that the CIA carried out under Director William J. Casey during the final years of the Cold War.
At the time, the United States was attempting to block Western Europe from importing Soviet natural gas. There were also signs that the Soviets were trying to steal a wide variety of Western technology. Then, a KGB insider revealed the specific shopping list and the CIA slipped the flawed software to the Soviets in a way they would not detect it.
"In order to disrupt the Soviet gas supply, its hard currency earnings from the West, and the internal Russian economy, the pipeline software that was to run the pumps, turbines, and valves was programmed to go haywire, after a decent interval, to reset pump speeds and valve settings to produce pressures far beyond those acceptable to pipeline joints and welds," Reed writes.
"The result was the most monumental nonnuclear explosion and fire ever seen from space," he recalls, adding that US satellites picked up the explosion. Reed said in an interview that the blast occurred in the summer of 1982.
"While there were no physical casualties from the pipeline explosion, there was significant damage to the Soviet economy," he writes. "Its ultimate bankruptcy, not a bloody battle or nuclear exchange, is what brought the Cold War to an end. In time the Soviets came to understand that they had been stealing bogus technology, but now what were they to do? By implication, every cell of the Soviet leviathan might be infected. They had no way of knowing which equipment was sound, which was bogus. All was suspect, which was the intended endgame for the entire operation."
Reed said he obtained CIA approval to publish details about the operation. The CIA learned of the full extent of the KGB's pursuit of Western technology in an intelligence operation known as the Farewell Dossier. Portions of the operation have been disclosed earlier, including in a 1996 paper in Studies in Intelligence, a CIA journal. The paper was written by Gus W. Weiss, an specialist on technology and intelligence who was instrumental in devising the plan to send the flawed materials and served with Reed on the National Security Council. Weiss died Nov. 25 at the age of 72.
The sabotage of the gas pipeline has not been previously disclosed, and at the time was a closely guarded secret. When the pipeline exploded, Reed writes, the first reports caused concern in the US military and at the White House. "NORAD feared a missile liftoff from a place where no rockets were known to be based," he said, referring to North American Air Defense Command. "Or perhaps it was the detonation of a small nuclear device." However, satellites did not pick up any telltale signs of a nuclear explosion.
"Before these conflicting indicators could turn into an international crisis," he added, "Gus Weiss came down the hall to tell his fellow NSC staffers not to worry."
The role that Reagan and the United States played in the collapse of the Soviet Union is still a matter of intense debate.
Some contend that US policy was the key factor -- Reagan's military buildup; the Strategic Defense Initiative, Reagan's proposed missile defense system; confronting the Soviets in regional conflicts; and rapid advances in US high technology. But others say that internal Soviet factors were more important, including economic decline and President Mikhail Gorbachev's revolutionary policies of glasnost and perestroika.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2004/02/27/us_let_soviets_obtain_faulty_technology_book_says/
To: Bonaparte
To: Cincinatus' Wife
Tom Dasheal is troubled.
To: Qwinn
Democrats are outraged. And still pushing the LIBERAL line:
..... But others say that internal Soviet factors were more important, including economic decline and President Mikhail Gorbachev's revolutionary policies of glasnost and perestroika.....
To: Texasforever
Tom Dasheal is troubled.He most certainly is.
To: Cincinatus' Wife
Kerry demands investigation into what GW knew and when he knew it.
To: Cincinatus' Wife
Way to go, Ronnie! God Bless You!
11
posted on
02/27/2004 12:55:57 AM PST
by
sonofatpatcher2
(Love & a .45-- What more could you want, campers? };^)
To: Cincinatus' Wife
The bombing starts in 5 minutes.
12
posted on
02/27/2004 12:58:48 AM PST
by
Democrap
(http://democrap.com)
To: Cincinatus' Wife
Where is the graphic of kerry saying communism is an overrated threat.
To: longtermmemmory
Where is the graphic of kerry saying communism is an overrated threat.Right now he's milking the Passion, but he'll get to it.
...."I don't know," he said when asked if he would see the Mel Gibson film about the last days of Jesus' life and its particularly harrowing focus on his crucifixion. Kerry, a Catholic, said he was worried about the movie's potential anti-Semitism. Some critics have complained that Gibson portrays Jews as responsible for Jesus' death. "I am concerned," he told reporters. "I don't know if it's there or not but there's a lot of it around now. I think we have to be careful." ..... Source
To: Texasforever
Kerry demands investigation into what GW knew and when he knew it.Yes, well he can demand until the cows come home because a true Commander in Chief conducts wars to protect the country and sometimes that requires secrecy.
To: sonofatpatcher2; Democrap
Bump!
To: Cincinatus' Wife
A man among men. One Freeper's name has always said it best for me... "Longs for Reagan"
To: AmericaUnited
The LIBERALS hated Reagan as much as they do Bush.
To: Cincinatus' Wife
I once was asked why Reagan was allowing more technology sold to the Soviet Union. I said, "we probably tainted the software"!
I knew I was right.
Just like how John Ashcroft now taints the evidence we get on certain terrorist...to watch them, follow them, listen in on them...to they day they die if necessary.
Too bad liberals like Kerry have tried to suppress our ability to do these nasty things for decades.
19
posted on
02/27/2004 1:43:31 AM PST
by
Fledermaus
(This Tagline For Rent!)
To: Fledermaus
The biggest thing Reagan did for destroying the Soviet Union was the US support for Islamic fundamentalist groups in Afghanistan.
It was these groups, with US aid coming through Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, that cost the Soviets their empire.
Unfortunately, when it was over the groups decided there was no sense going out of business. They have since spread to almost every corner of the globe, with amazing results.
The heroin sales they used for funding back then are still going strong today. Well, except for a brief period when the Taliban managed to clamp down on the trade.
In fact, since the US war in Afghanistan the heroin is back in full swing, with most of it being funneled through Kosovo, the playground of the KLA.
For the unfamiliar, the KLA was the group that played a major role in the break up of Yugoslavia. The 78 day NATO bombing campaign against the Serbs helped them immeasurably, although probably coincidentally.
In any case, now they are able to carry on business as usual, with nary a peep from the administration. I guess ends are everything and means are, well, just, means.
20
posted on
02/27/2004 2:18:29 AM PST
by
fuzlim
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