They are always in danger, but are well protected. Secret service veteran Valery Velichko has spoken to the Komsomolskaya Pravda daily and revealed the secrets of the world’s top politicians’ bodyguards. He served in the KGB's Ninth Division that had been

Ill-fated repairs

Once, Gorbachev and his family went to the Crimean resort of Foros. His daughter was trying to open the curtains as the ledge fell on her head. She was not injured at all, nevertheless nearly 15 people close to the incident were fired. Several people earlier awarded for excellent service to the state – including the Ninth Division deputy head – lost their jobs at once.

Sniper with a remote

George H. W. Bush also came to Moscow on a visit. As his cavalcade was passing along the street, security received an alarm. A figure of a man sitting with some red-light-blinking device in his hand was seen out of the window. There was no way to bring Bush back into his residence, as it threatened to provoke a worldwide brawl. As the combat crew had broken into the flat where the potential sniper could lurk, it met a man standing at the window and switching the channels with a TV remote. That very moment the KGB snipers were ready to shoot and waiting for the ‘fire!’ command.

Carry your coals to Newcastle for safety

Soviet high-profile authorities have traveled with their ZIL-cars while going on state visits. Though it was costly it was reasonable. This ‘tradition’ started as Nikita Khrushev flew to the U.S. He was provided with a Cadillac to ride about and had no clue the car had been equipped with a listening device.  Being stressed after the negotiations ended, he voiced his view on the talks and the Americans in his specific expressive manner. As he came back, it turned out it was cheaper to ship an automobile halfway across the world than to lose important state negotiations due to a leak.

Don’t let the Finnish be finished

Among the guests of the Russian capital was the former president of Finland Urkho Kaleva Kekkonen. He was given a bodyguard. But it turned out Kekhonen was a devoted fan of long-distance morning jogs. The security had to keep up with him, but could not protect the president well enough after being whipped up. KGB had nothing to do but to replace him with a professional runner.