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TIME: Almanac 1990
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1990 Time Magazine Compact Almanac, The (1991)(Time).iso
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time
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102389
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10238900.038
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1990-09-22
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NATION, Page 43American NotesESPIONAGESeen a Spy? Call the FBI
In John le Carre's fictional world of spy vs. spy, the good
spooks outfox the bad spooks by dealing in deceit and deception.
In the real world of counterespionage, the FBI is taking a much
more candid approach. This month it began running an unusual
help-wanted ad in a Russian-language newspaper in New York City to
make a very public plea: anyone having "direct knowledge of KGB
methods or operations" should call or write the nearest FBI office.
The ad provides telephone numbers, including that of a
counterintelligence section conveniently manned by Russian-speaking
agents.
The appeal is directed at the roughly 200,000 Soviet citizens
who have immigrated to the U.S. since 1975, many of whom live in
the New York area. The purpose of the ads, says FBI spokesman Milt
Ahlerich, is the "identification of hostile intelligence
activities." That includes the detection of approaches made to
Soviet emigres by KGB agents. But couldn't the callers deliberately
feed disinformation to the FBI? "That could happen," concedes
Ahlerich. "We're prepared to address the problem." Despite the
FBI's new glasnost, Ahlerich would not even hint at what
respondents to the ad have been telling the bureau.