In the 1960s - 1970s, the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the USSR was rightfully considered one of the most powerful and most secretive intelligence organizations in the world - even the very fact of the existence of such an organization was kept secret from ordinary Soviet citizens who were not initiated into her secrets. But the GRU was only the tip of a gigantic pyramid of military intelligence that permeated the entire armed forces and military-industrial complex of the Soviet Union. This book talks about how Soviet military intelligence was organized, how it worked and what place it occupied in the system of state power. You will learn:• Why military intelligence is needed and how it arose in Soviet Russia.• How Soviet military intelligence was organized at the tactical, operational and strategic level.• Who and how was selected and trained to work in military intelligence.• What techniques were used by GRU officers for recruiting agents and on what principles the work with them was based.• How the work of GRU agents, officers and stations was assessed, and how the GRU managed to achieve the highest efficiency from them.• Why special forces units were created in the Soviet Army and what tasks they solved. Excellent an addition to the novel “Aquarium” and a fascinating read for anyone interested in the history of the Soviet intelligence services. The book includes 80 photographs, including rare photographs from Russian and foreign archives.