Modin,
Yuri Ivanovich, with Jean-Charles Deniau and Aguieszka Ziarek. Tr., Anthony
Roberts. My Five Cambridge Friends: Burgess, Maclean, Philby, Blunt, and Cairncross by Their KGB Controller. London: Headline, 1994. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1994.
The author "was initially the Five's deskman in Moscow Centre during World War Two, and after 1948, he became the London controller of John Cairncross,... Guy Burgess,... and Anthony Blunt." (p. 2)
According to Chambers (see also IWRQ 2.1), there are "no major revelations" in Modin's biographic sketches of the members of the ring "except to give credit to the veterans Deutsch and Maly for recruiting the ring, and to support the view that Morris Dobb was a talent spotter rather than a recruiter, and his opinion that the prime mover in the formation of the ring was Burgess.... The overall tone of the book is that of an old soldier who did his duty and who is proud of his service.... Praise must go to the translator (Anthony Roberts) for his role.... This book may not be the very last word on the Cambridge ring, but it is a significant contribution and a highly entertaining one that is strongly recommended." For Chambers' full review, CLICK here.
Surveillant 3.6 says Modin "reveals previously unknown details.... Burgess, he tells us, was far more an important player than previously thought.... [He] admits that most of the book comes from his memory."
For Kerr, I&NS 11.3, "Modin's book gave the general impression that he was closely connected to the Cambridge network throughout their careers ... from the 1930s to 1951.... When Modin's career is juxtaposed with the movements of the Cambridge network this general impression of omniscience fades away.... Modin's access to ... these agents fluctuates from being a firsthand witness to ... relying upon secondary source material.... [Nevertheless,] Modin is a valuable source but ... in Mclean's case he has marginal value."
See also, Jamie Bisher, "Colonel Modin on Philby, Burgess, and Blunt," Foreign Intelligence Literary Scene 12, no. 6: 1-2.
Nechiporenko,
Oleg Maximovich. Passport to Assassination: The Never-Before-Told Story of Lee Harvey Oswald by the KGB Colonel Who Knew Him. Secaucus, NJ: Birch Lane Press, 1993.
Surveillant 3.4/5: Nechiporenko was "named -- as Oswald's KGB 'Manager' in Mexico City -- in John Barron's 1974 book The KGB and in the 1978 book by Hugh MacDonald and Robin Moore." He says "that the KGB had no such tie to Oswald." This book is "timely and of considerable interest." Those "who cling to the idea of a conspiracy" will probably "adjust their theories to incorporate this account..., deeming it a deliberate bit of disinformation."
Pavlov,
Vitaly. Memoirs of a Spymaster: My Fifty Years in the KGB. New York: Carroll & Graf, 1994. [Surveillant 3.6]
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