Presentation at the New America Foundation

On October 11, 2010, authors Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan presented their new book, The New Nobility. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 the KGB was disbanded and a new Russian intelligence service was created, called the FSB. During the event, the authors argued that the FSB is effectively more powerful than its predecessor. Most importantly, the speakers noted that the “new nobility” lacks any parliamentary oversight and are not publicly accountable. Compared to previous outfits, the FSB is actually more opaque.

Soldatov and Borogan explored the structure and activity of the FSB with their opening statements. One of the important distinctions made by the participants is the focus of FSB activity; while the spiritual successor of the KGB is active abroad, is has since been deployed against domestic political opponents. Lingering questions about direction and accountability were evident during the discussion, especially when the authors reminded the audience of how difficult it is to research such an insular organization.

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