[104-10211-10001.pdf — page 130]
731. ## Transfer to the Tourist DepartmentSome time in the fall of 1961, NOSENKO said, he heard of GRIBANOV's decision to promote him to the position of Deputy Chief of the entire American Department. NOSENKO, however, knew that his chief and friend KOVSHUK wanted the job and that FEDOSEYEV (Chief of the Department) also favored KOVSHUK for this position. Realizing that his own appointment would therefore place him in a difficult position and wishing to avoid this, NOSENKO spoke to the Chief of the Tourist Department, CHELNOKOV, about returning there. At CHELNOKOV's suggestion, NOSENKO went to GRIBANOV with the request to be returned to the Tourist Department as Chief of the American Tourist Section, with the understanding that he would be made Deputy Chief of the Tourist Department upon the retirement of the incumbent, BALDIN, in July 1962. To this GRIBANOV agreed. NOSENKO said that GRIBANOV did not discuss with himhis reasons for wanting to appoint him Deputy Chief of the American Department or for appointing him Chief of the American Tourist Section, nor did ne discuss with NOSENKO his personal requirements for these positions. On one occasion, in early 1965, NOSENKO said that it was because GRIBANOV "thought I was a tough guy, a good case officer. In 1959 I saw him often and was involved in a lot of questions which were reported to him." According to his most recent version, NOSENKO was officially transferred from the American Department at the end of December 1961 and reported for duty in the Tourist Department on about 3 January 1962.KOVSHUK, who was also a candidate for the job as Deputy Chief of the American Department, had earlier held this position, according to NOSENKO and GOLITSYN. He had been personally involved in many of the more significant American Department operations during the previous decade. These included the recruitments of RHODES and SMITH (the latter one of NOSENKO's most important leads, according to NOSENKO); the handling of SHAPIRO; the attempts to recruit STORSBERG, HARMSTONE, and HANNHEIM; the development of the CIA officer WINTERS and the interrogation of LANGELLE in connection with the POPOV arrest.By contrast, GRIBANOV's original candidate for the job, NOSENKO, was present when KOZLOV recruited BURGI, and himself recruited HARRIS and five homosexual tourists who visited the Soviet Union in 1959: Furthermore, NOSENKO's performance as Deputy Chief of the U.S. Embassy Section. as he admitted under interrogation, was "not good."NOSENKO has given many contradictory dates for his transfer to the Tourist Department. In 1962 NOSENKO said at various times that this took place in January 1962 and in February 1962: in 1964 he timed the transfer as falling some time between 15 and 20 January 1962; and in February 1965 he arrived at the date of 2 or 3 January 1962, after it was pointed out that he appeared in the approach to W. E. JOHNSON on 5 January. (On this basis, he said that the official order was issued about 25 December 1961 and that he turned over his files to his successor GRYAZNOV several days later.) NOSENKO contradicted this latter estimate. however, by saying that he was in the U.S. Embassy Section for the entire period of the three-month surveillance ofTOP SECRET