Christopher Andrew - The Sword and the Shield

AFSA — Armed Forces Security [SIGINT] Agency [USA]

AKEL — Cyprus Communist Party Amtorg American-Soviet Trading Corporation, New York

ASA — Army Security [SIGINT] Agency [USA]

AVH — Hungarian security and intelligence agency

AVO — predecessor of AVH

BfV — FRG security service

BND — FRG foreign intelligence agency

CDU — Christian Democratic Union [FRG]

Cheka — All-Russian Extraordinary Commission for Combating Counter-Revolution and Sabotage: predecessor KGB (1917-22)

CIA — Central Intelligence Agency [USA]

COCOM — Coordinating Committee for East-West Trade

Comecon — [Soviet Bloc] Council for Mutual Economic Aid Comintern Communist International

CPC — Christian Peace Conference

CPC — Communist Party of Canada

CPCz — Communist Party of Czechoslovakia

CPGB — Communist Party of Great Britain

CPSU — Communist Party of the Soviet Union

CPUSA — Communist Party of the United States of America

CSU — Christian Social Union [FRG: ally of CDU]

DCI — Director of Central Intelligence [USA]

DGS — Portuguese security service

DGSE — French foreign intelligence service

DIA — Defense Intelligence Agency [USA]

DLB — dead letter-box

DRG — Soviet sabotage and intelligence group

DS — Bulgarian security and intelligence service

DST — French security service

F Line — “Special Actions” department in KGB residencies

FAPSI — Russian (post-Soviet) SIGINT agency

FBI — Federal Bureau of Investigation [USA]

FCD — First Chief [Foreign Intelligence] Directorate, KGB

FCO — Foreign and Commonwealth Office [UK]

FRG — Federal Republic of Germany

GCHQ — Government Communications Head-Quarters [British SIGINT Agency]

GDR — German Democratic Republic

GPU — Soviet security and intelligence service (within NKVD, 1922-3)

GRU — Soviet Military Intelligence

GUGB — Soviet security and intelligence service (within NKVD, 1943-43)

Gulag — Labour Camps Directorate

HUMINT — intelligence from human sources (espionage)

HVA — GDR foreign intelligence service

ICBM — intercontinental ballistic missile

IMINT — imagery intelligence

INO — foreign intelligence department of Cheka/GPU/OGPU/ GUGB, 1920-1941; predecessor of INU

INU — foreign intelligence directorate of NKGB/GUGB/MGB, 1941-54; predecessor of FCD

IRA — Irish Republican Army

JIC — Joint Intelligence Committee [UK]

K-231 — club of former political prisoners jailed under Article 231 of the Czechoslovak criminal code

KAN — Club of Non-Party Activists [Czechoslovakia]

KGB — Soviet security and intelligence service (1954-1991)

KHAD — Afghan security service

KI — Soviet foreign intelligence agency, initially combining foreign intelligence directorates of MGB and GRU (1947-51)

KKE — Greek Communist Party

KKE-es — breakaway Eurocommunist Greek Communist Party

KOR — Workers Defence Committee [Poland]

KPÖ — Austrian Communist Party

KR Line — Counter-intelligence department in KGB residencies

LLB — live letter box

MGB — Soviet Ministry of State Security (1946-54)

MGIMO — Moscow State Institute for International Relations

MI5 — British security service

MI6 — alternative designation for SIS [UK]

MOR — Monarchist Association of Central Russia (“The Trust”)

N Line — Illegal support department in KGB residencies

NATO — North Atlantic Treaty Organization

NKGB — People’s Commisariat for State Security (Soviet security and intelligence service, 1941 and 1943-6)

NKVD — People’s Commisariat for Internal Affairs (incorporated state security, 1922-3, 1934-43)

NSA — National Security [SIGINT] Agency [USA]

NSC — National Security Council [USA]

NSZRiS — People’s [anti-Bolshevik] Union for Defence of Country and Freedom

NTS — National Labour Alliance (Soviet émigré social-democratic movement)

Okhrana — Tsarist security service, 1881-1917

OMS — Comintern International Liaison Department

OSS — Office of Strategic Services [USA]

OT — Operational Technical Support (FCD)

OUN — Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists

OZNA — Yugoslav security and intelligence service

PCF — French Communist Party

PCI — Italian Communist Party

PCP — Portuguese Communist Party

PFLP — Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine

PIDE — Portuguese Liberation Organization

PLO — Palestine Liberation Organization

POUM — Workers Unification Party (Spanish Marxist Trotskyist Party in 1930s)

PR Line — political intelligence department in KGB residences

PSOE — Spanish Socialist Party

PUWP — Polish United Workers [Communist] Party

RCMP — Royal Canadian Mounted Police

ROVS — [White] Russian Combined Services Union

RYAN — Raketno-Yadernoye Napadenie (Nuclear Missile Attack)

SALT — Strategic Arms Limitation Talks

SAM — Soviet surface-to-air missile

SB — Polish Security and intelligence service

SCD — Second Chief [Internal Security and Counter-Intelligence] Directorate, KGB

SDECE — French foreign intelligence service; predecessor of DGSE

SDI — Strategic Defense Initiative (‘Star Wars’)

SED — Socialist Unity [Communist] Party [GDR]

SIGINT — intelligence derived from interception and analysis of signals

SIS — Secret Intelligence Service [UK]

SK Line — Soviet colony department in KGB residencies

SKP — Communist Party of Finland

SOE — Special Operations Executive [UK]

SPD — Social Democratic Party [FRG]

Spetsnaz — Soviet special forces

SR — Socialist Revolutionary

S&T — scientific and technological intelligence

Stapo — Austrian police security service

Stasi — GDR Ministry of State Security

Stavka — Wartime Soviet GHQ/high command

StB — Czechoslovak security and intelligence service

SVR — Russian (post-Soviet) foreign intelligence service

TUC — Trades Union Congress [UK]

UAR — United Arab Republic

UB — Polish security and intelligence service; predecessor of SB

UDBA — Yugoslav security and intelligence service; successor to OZNA

VPK — Soviet Military Industrial Commission

VVR — Supreme Military Council [anti-Bolshevik Ukranian underground]

WCC — World Council of Churches

WPC — World Peace Council

X Line — S&T department in KGB residencies

The term KGB is used both generally to denote the Soviet State Security organisation throughout its history since its foundation as the Cheka in 1917 and, more specifically, to refer to State Security after 1954 when it took its final name.