CIA Cold War Project AEROOT Extracts ©

AEROOT was the cryptonym for an early CIA Cold War Foreign Intelligence (FI) project involving Estonia and Estonian nationals of the USSR.  Below is a look at the 1957 project renewal request:

28 June 1957

The attached project, originating in the Soviet/Russia Division, provided for the utilization of all practicable channels of communication with the Estonian SSR to develop, recruit, establish and direct legal resident agents to collect operational and positive intelligence information.

The original AEROOT Project was approved on 13 May 1953 under Basic Plan AEBASIN and continued using renewals and extensions until 31 October 1956. The renewal request for 1 November 1956 through 31 March 1958 included the following Summary of accomplishments from 5 April 1955 to 1 November 1956: 

·      Recruited two Soviet Estonian residents as informers. 

·      Detected and followed up three Russian Intelligence Service (RIS) agents from Estonian SSR in cooperation with Swedish and British intelligence services. 

·      Interrogated and caused confessions of two RIS agents from Estonian SSR. 

·      Spotted one Principal/Agent candidate for work in cooperation with Finnish Intelligence Service. 

·      Recruited one agent for a repatriation mission to Estonian SSR. 

·      Recruited a merchant seaman qualified to visit Soviet ports. 

·      Recruited two mail drops for Secret/Writing correspondence with the Estonian SSR. 

·      Detected RIS control of a Swedish IS agent in Estonian SSR, with whom we also were in 

unilateral communication. 

The objectives of the AEROOT project were:

1.     Establish several legal resident agents in Estonian SSR. 

2.     Utilize all practicable channels of communication between Estonian SSR and the Western World to develop, recruit and direct legal resident agents.

3.     Spot, recruit, brief, and, when practicable, train legal travelers between Estonian SSR and the West. 

4.     Extract operational and positive intelligence information from visitors to and from Estonian SSE, one-time Estonian-resident Volks-Deutsche Prisoners of War clean and unclean escapees from Estonian SSR. 

The following agent personnel, carried in Project AEROOT in the past, were terminated: 

a. Hanks Augusti Toomla, was dispatched to Estonia in the spring of 1954. He lost his life apparently while in Soviet hands. Payment of death benefits to his heirs, provided in his contract with the Agency, is pending settlement of his estate. 

b. Kalja Nikolai Kukk was dispatched into Estonia with Toomla. It was reported he was captured by HIS forces in the spring of 1954. According to a Soviet announcement, he was tried by a Soviet military tribunal in 1955. He is now presumed to be dead. His contract with the Agency provides for payment of death benefits to his designated heirs upon settlement of his estate

They Speak for Freedom: Closed-circuit Television Broadcast for Radio Free Europe ©

 

A closed-circuit half-hour television program "They Speak for Freedom" took place on Tuesday, March 29, 1960, in New York City to "commemorate the tenth anniversary of Radio Free Europe." It was intended for radio and television broadcasters around the United States. 

Those participating included 

• Donald H. McGannon, of Chairman of Broadcasters for Free Europe, president of Westinghouse Broadcasting Company, and host of the program; 
• W.B. Murphy, Crusade for Freedom chairman; 
• Joseph Koevago, former Mayor of Budapest; 
• Leonard Goldenson, chairman of ABC network; 
• Robert Sarnoff, chairman, NBC; 
• Frank Stanton, president, CBS; 
• Martin Block, ABC disk jockey; 
• Arlene Francis, radio and television actress; and 
• Howard K. Smith, CBS Washington news correspondent. 

            

After being introduced by McGannon, Crusade for Freedom chairman Murphy said, 

Last January, I was privileged to visit Radio Free Europe headquarters in Munich and Lisbon. After a day or two there, a kind of cold shiver goes down one's back. You know there's a vicious cold war going on. You come away with a tremendous feeling of respect for the job Radio Free Europe is doing.

A short but detailed film about Radio Free Europe was then shown. Murphy continued, "All of this costs money. It must be private money. Radio Free Europe is not a government operation. It's a private, non-profit organization supported by American citizens and corporations." 

 

Robert Sarnoff was introduced, and he said, "We broadcasters are called upon day-in-and-day-out to serve many good causes, and I think we do a pretty good job of it...Of all the public service efforts that claim our support, Radio Free Europe is the only one that itself is an arm of broadcasting. Now let's show what kind of a job broadcasting can do in this country to raise funds that make this extraordinary service possible."

            

Frank Stanton then added, "The strength of Radio Free Europe derives from its expression of a free people's concern for entrapped fellow human beings across the seas...Nothing is more important about Radio Free Europe than that it reflects the convictions of as many American people as they hear about it...I hope that all of us will take the opportunity seriously to do all that we can to inform our listeners and viewers about Radio Free Europe."

            

McGannon then explained the upcoming Crusade campaign, including the Radio Free Europe kits, a "do it yourself campaign kit specially prepared for broadcasters. You'll find spot announcements, live tapes, films, telops, scripts, discs, the whole works in it." 

 

McGannon then introduced famed news commentator Howard K. Smith, who said: 

 

I've been privileged to be able to report on that story over the years and I hope I will be able to continue to report it in the future. Every mention of RFE's activities is a contribution to the world we want and the kind of world I am persuaded most other people want. As newscasters, we want to do all we can to support Radio Free Europe.

 

McGannon concluded the show with, 

 

Well, that is the story. We've talked about Radio Free Europe and what it does, how it does it, and what we can do to help it. Now it is time for everyone here, every broadcaster in the business, to speak up...We want you to use the radio and television material on your stations, which will be sent to you very shortly. We want you to put on a saturation campaign during the period of our special drive – April 24 through May 8. Speak up, America! Let's show the people behind the Iron Curtain how we feel about freedom of speech, free journalism, free radio, and free television.

 

At a meeting of the directors of the Crusade for Freedom in May 1960, the Broadcasters for Radio Free Europe campaign was declared a disappointment because of the low financial returns but "it was the consensus that the educational value had been stupendous and the fringe benefits probably far larger than can be counted in terms of money received."

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