People far from power do not even suspect that sophisticated intrigues lie at the heart of big politics, and even good goals are achieved through very base means. Sometimes, over time, we learn the true meaning of these intrigues. Sometimes all this remains a mystery to us. Not only the August putsch, but also many other things that happened in 1991, are still fraught with many secrets and mysteries. It was this year that determined the fate of our country. A key role in the tragic events of 1991 was played by the State Security Committee, within which a desperate and little-known struggle unfolded for the future of the KGB department and the state itself. In his new book, L. Mlechin, relying on previously unknown documents and testimonies of direct participants in the events, firstly a line of high-ranking security officers, tells how events developed in Lubyanka and throughout the country that year.