History
The active reserve was established by Yuri Andropov in the end of 1960s. "Active reservists" worked in all organizations of importance including press and television.
A "Law on Foreign Intelligence" adopted in August 1992 provided conditions for penetration by former KGB officers to all levels of the government and economy, since it stipulated that "career personnel may occupy positions in ministries, departments, establishments, enterprises and organizations in accordance with the requirements of this law without compromising their association with foreign intelligence agencies.". "All big companies have to put people from the security services on the board of directors... and we know that when Lubyanka calls, they have to answer them", said a Russian banker . A current FSB colonel explained that "We must make sure that companies don't make decisions that are not in the interest of the state" .
Olga Kryshtanovskaya, director of the Moscow-based Center for the Study of Elites, has found in the beginning of 2000s (decade) that up to 78% of 1,016 leading political figures in post-Soviet Russia have served previously in organizations affiliated with the KGB or FSB. She said: "If in the Soviet period and the first post-Soviet period, the KGB and FSB people were mainly involved in security issues, now half are still involved in security but the other half are involved in business, political parties, NGOs, regional governments, even culture... They started to use all political institutions."
Read more about this topic: Active Reserve (KGB)
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