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Vue lecture

How a KGB archivist defected with a treasure trove of Soviet secrets — and even his family had no clue

Par :Eric Spitznagel

10 janvier 2026 à 20:00

Vladimir Mitrokhin's amazing story is the subject of a new book, 'The Spy in the Archive: How One Man Tried to Kill the KGB.'

Photo of "Robert" with his face obscured, wearing a trench coat and carrying an AK-47, standing next to a yellow van.

Vasili Mitrokhin in his KGB uniform.

Black and white photo of Vasili Mitrokhin, an older man with dark, wavy hair and a mustache, wearing a turtleneck sweater and a jacket.

Vasili Mitrokhin and his son Vladimir on the boat during their exfiltration from Lithuania. Here, they are pictured on the boat during their extraction.

Book cover for "The Spy in the Archive" by Gordon Corera, featuring a silhouette of a man in a fedora against a backdrop of Russian architecture.

Vasili Mitrokhin in London working on his final book Chekisms.