Evening star., 1954-05-02

This account was obtoined from
stories in the Austrolion press, prin-
eipoIIy the Sydney Morning Herald.
permission to make q state
ment. The House fell silent as
he started:
Some days ago Mr.. Vladimir
Mikhailovich Petrov, who has
been third secretary and con-
sui in the Soviet Embassy in
Australia since February, 1851,
voluntarily left his diplomatic
employment and made to
the Australian government
through the Australian Secur-
ity Intelligence Organization
request for political asylum"
There were gasps from the
astonished House. AS he went
on government members inter-
ceded with hear-hears of ap-
proval and when Mr.. Menzies
concluded the House broke into
loud, confused conversation
and more cheers.
Somewhere in Australia
Vladimir Petrov was listening
to the proceedings on the
radio. He was quite relaxed
now. 1t had been a hectic year
for him.
Troubles Begin
His troubles began when
Stain died. Thousands of
miles away from the action in
the Kremlin, Comrade Petrov
could not judge how the grim
battle for power was going.
When Lavrenti Beria, his
chief, was executed in De-
cember, he was sure he was in
for trouble. He decided then
not to return to Russia.
But there were few outward
signs that Petrov worried. He
continued his partying, still
went fishing with diplomatic
groups, and made frequent ex-
curSions from Canberra to
Sydney alone by car. These
were unusual caryings-on for
a Russian abroad, but not so
unusual for man in Petrov's
position.
He was chief of the Russian
secret police organization in
Australia. He did not label
himself that way, of course,
but most of the diplomatic
corps in Canberra had figured
it out. Forty-five-year-old
third secretaries are unheard
of, except in cases like Pet
rows. Then their titles are a
front.
Stocky, bull-necked Petrov
was married to a slim, trim
blonde, about Is years his
Junior, named Evdokina. She
was a code clerk at the Soviet
Embassy. They appeared to-
gether occasionally at cock
tail parties, and some of the
Canberra diplomatic S e t
thought they didn't get along.
Their neighbors doubted that,
however.
The Petrovs lived in a
pheasant Canberra suburb
called Griffith. Their home was
just down the street from the
Russian Embassy, where both
of them worked. A vicious
Alsatian dog rounded out the
family group. Mr.. Petrov often
walked the dog evenings, and
Mrs. Petrov usually had the
animal on a leash when she
went shopping.
First Approach
Petrov first went to the Aus
tralian security Office several
months ago. probably Febru-
ary. He asked asylum then,
but the Australians sent him
away to get proof of his good
faith. He brought back a
bundle of documents, and
promised more. After the Sc
curity officers satisfied them
selves that the papers were
genuine, they tentatively
agreed to grant him asylum
and Petrov made his plans to
escape.
Little by little he accumu-
lated documents, spiriting
them out of the Russian EN-
bassy and out of his home. He
had a secret hiding place for
them, to which he led the
Australian Security Intelli-
gence Organization men early
last month.
How much Mrs. Petrov knew
about her husbands activities
is not known definitely, but
some evidence suggests that
maybe Vladimir was trying to
give Evdokina the slip.
The day after Mr.. Menzies
reported her husband had
been granted asylum. Mrs.
Petrov talked to Australian re-
porters at the Russian EN-
bassy. Red-eyed from crying,
she said in her broken English,
Il think he is Kidnapped"
Some one asked if she had
elected to stay with the Soviet
Embassy. YES" she said, and
then paused. ut is difficult
to speak now," she went on.
II don't believe my husband
would go to your country like
this. I don't think he would
do this himself. He had to
come to Canberra on April 6.
He did not come. I am sure
he is kidnapped and what the
papers write today is only a
lio a