14-00000 LIFEAT/Cuban: The most noteworthy LIFEAT. contribution to Station efforts in the Cuban operations field was that of providing leads pinpointing the acti- vities of Transcontineatal, S.A. in the Ulegal transshipment of U.S, materials to Cuba via Mexico. LIFEAT was able to continue coverage of the activities of this company despite the efforts of the company to lose itself in the Mexican wd business community :by changing the name it operated under to Inversiones “ Mexicanas, 5. A. and changing its location and telephone number, Valuable information on the commercial. commodities needed by the Castro regime,  __ methods and contacts used in their procurement, and ‘information on the con-" tacts of the Cuban Embassv in Mexico were obtained, LIFEAT/Czechoslovakian: LIFEAT coverage of the home phones of two Czech intelligence officers provided some leads to their contacts, but more impor- tantly, provided greater security to KUBAR K when one of their CIS officers, Miloslay CECH, was singled out for a defection attempt, . Through LIFEAT “Itvemonitoring” cf both the original and followup defection atempts, the KUBARK assets were provided maximum proteciion from possible attempts by CECH to alert his coworkers or arrange entrapmeat of the KUBARK per- sonnel involved, , LIFEAT/Polish: Probably the most "classic" example of the use of a telephone tap in providing a tead which could develop into a vual penetration of the Polish intelligence occurred recently in the BEKNAVE/BECHICK operation, LIFEAT provided the inital leads which made the Station aware of the possibilities of an operation and has conrinued to provide vital information for Station's develop- ment of the operation, It is the S:ation’s opinion that this one instance of service by LIFEAT was well worth the cost of the entire project for the year, (Full information forwarded in MEX1 0462 and MEXI 0463), Also of great interest to the Station were the LIFEAT provided leads which revealed Jan SLUSARZ, Attache of the Polish Embassy in Mexico, had purchased an automobile which : had been stolen in the U.S, and driven to Mexico. In this operation, in which a defection attempt was cousidered, LIFEAT provided ao: only the initial leads, but also daily operational information viral co the Station's efforts in this case, LIFEAT/ Yugoslavian: In this’ coverage of the Yugoslavian Embassy LIFEAT is providing the basic data necessary in establishing operations against this target, Since the Station is expanding its coverage of Yugoslavian activities, much viral data on personalities, contacis, and services obtained by the target establish- inent must be provided, It is this exact type of coverage that LIFEAT is geared _ an to provide in addirion to the operatioaal leads which will be forthcoming as this coverage progresses, The interested case officer, noting LIFEAT is his only present source of information, feels the take which LIFEAT provides and will ge
continue to, provide in this area is vital and basic to the mounting of any operations against the Yugoslay target. : LIFEAT/Soviet/Double ‘Agent: ‘LIFEAT support has provided needed sup- . porting information in backing Stat ton double agent operations, In this area -the success of the operation is obviously dependent upon the veracity of the agent, LIFEAT provides information which enables the interested case officer to determine the veracity of the agent involved, LIFEAT also provides a needed check upon the activities of the double agent, LIFEAT/Spanish Republican: ‘LIFEAT coverage of Spanish Republican exiles in Mexico City have enabled the Station to monitor the activities of the various groupings of the exiles, including che projected attempt on the life of the senior ODACID official In Mexico, LIFEAT has covered personalities of exile . factions both involve in planning this attempt and those opposed to it, Coverage of targets in this area algo enables che Station to keep abreast of the plans and activities ofthe various groups which make up the Spanish Republican exile community In Mexico City, LIFEAT/CI-CE Coverage: LIFEAT leads in this area are exploited in the-re- porting of travel of important Communists, particularly to Cuba and Iron ** Curtain countries, and the travel of U.S, citizens, especially Communists and Leftists, 1o Cuba, Through coverage of the American Communist Group in Mexico (ACGM) LIFEAT has provided ODENVY with an increasing amount of information on the leftist activities of relatives and friends of the ACGM who reside inthe U.S. One of the noteable items in this regard ts providing data on the overt and covert efforts of the blacklisted “Hollywood Ten” to regain their former status in the U.S. film industry. Finally, and certainly not of least importance, Station security has been enhanced through LIFEAT perlodic coverage cf-former Station assets, like LIVESTOCK-2 and LIVESTOCK-~-2, who could be a danger to particular Srarion operations or personnel, Monitoring of certain terminated agents is considered especially valuable where these agents were involved in the more sensitive operations, Conclusion It is the opinion of the Mexico City Station that the support provided other Station operations, the CI/CE information and leads, and the ability of the unilateral LIF EAT operation to cover sensitive targets without revealing Station interest = -
14-00000 nn to. the liaison forces, well justify. the expenditure of funds, time, * personnel, a : a, and: security risk;: ‘AS it has beén- fidted in the past, that even with the Station's -<. * envolvement in the parallel; but liaison, LIENVOY operation, a change in mo, . “> attitude by.tche:present | local government administration or a change-in govern- 7 : - ment adminiscrations. could end KUBARK participation in that liaison project. : For that reason, ‘LEFEAT, in addition to maintaining ts present-heavy coverage, . '. tust be’ ‘available: to oncé again undertake’ coverdge of the official Soviet and Czech official targets tn Mexico City. Therefore, LIFEAT's present orientation, though coward supporting Station Operations and CI/CE mission rather than toward targets which would provide positive intelligence, leaves it readily available for™ recall Into the Soviet-Czech coverage: ' It is the Station's firm opinion that the LIFEAT project provides a stbstantial and vital contribution In fulfilling the several priority objectives of the Station's Related Mission Directive. woes es “El “There ts attached a list of the HMMs produced from LIFEAT provided material during the period July 1961 through May 1962 as a by-product of the project’ 8 prime responsibility of providing support to Station operations, a IL Progress of the Operation The objectives of the LIFEAT Project are of a continuing nature and are there- fore not considered for fulfillment during any given period of time, For this reason percentage figures as to completion of project objectives cannot be drawn, However, an Indication of the coverage provided in working toward fulfillment _ f the objectives can be noted in that 14,000 pages of raw text were produced - in the period July 1961 through May 1962. LEIFEAT has been in daily operation ’ during the review period with the average number of lines covered per month being 26, with a high in March 1962 of 28 lines covered, Il. Planning for the Future AS was indicated at the time of the last project renewal, LIFEAT hopes to re- main uncommitted to coverages that require the expenditure of a great portion of LIFEAT resources but provide coverage of but one target. ..such as Soviet Embassy coverage. lt is added emphatically, however, that should the need arise for LIFEAT to again assume such responsibilities, it is fully able to do so, Until such time LIFEAT will continue to enjoy greater flexibility in the employ- ment of its assets, especially ia the areas in which the Station does not wish to reveal its interest or operations to the.liaison-forces involved in the LIENVOY operation, As to particular areas of operations, the Station has hopes of employing LIFEAT assets in “hor mike operations which require access to telephone Ba ;
14-00000 ree, rg Loe . centrals and cables, The feasibility of using LIFEAT in this type of operation ~8 oa has already been proven, ina recent operation with the LIERODE installation’ "ag a target, ‘Seven reels df "hdt mike" take were obtalied In test-runs on checking both the operation (Including installation of the "miked" Instrument in the:office of the head of the LIERODE offictal installation) and che equipment which was of radical- -design and conceived and bullt’ by the KURIOT techni¢ian aasigned to Mexico City Station under deep cover, Unfortunately, before con- tinuous operation could get underway, the LIERODE installation decided upon complete renovation of its telephone system, including the Installation ofa switchboard, This, at least temporarily, precludes further operation against this particular target, unless a direct line is tnscalled there, However, it is _ the Intention of the Station to attempt coverage of other targets of Interest, In these plans LIFEAT plays the key role in installation, line and serles cross ___ maintenance, baséhouse procurément and maintenance, and ‘processing of také, From the brief test runs via the LIERODE operation noted above, it is believed that "hot mike" operations, supported and maintained by LIFEAT, can greatly aid the Station in its coverage of responsibilities under its present Related Mission Directive, IV, Performance of Agents The overall performance of all agents employed in the LIFEAT complex con- tinued to be good during the period of the project review, wleh security being stressed In all phases of the operation, No security problemg were encountered which were not solved by the personnel involved, Since the success of the LIFEAT operation depends largely upon the security of Its personnel, Head- quarters clearances and evaluation of new personnel will continue to be sought on those new additions who pass a strict field assessment. V. Expenditures Approval for renewal of Project LIFEAT was granted 8 September 1961 for FY 1962 in the amount of $98,973.03. The proposed budget for FY 1953 is broken down in the attached Field Project Outline Renewal Request, Part Il, and totals ; TOF, oot ay ott? VI. Status of Commitments There are no commitments other than those noted in the project outline submitted herewith and in the individuals contracts and oral agreements (memoranda of oral agreements were forwarded as necessary) of the various LIFEAT personnel,