Federal Security Service The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation ( FSB ) ( ; " Federal ' naya sluzhba bezopasnosti Rossiyskoy Federatsii " ) is the principal security agency of the Russian Federation and the main successor agency to the USSR ' s Committee of State Security ( KGB ) . Its main responsibilities are within the country and include counter - intelligence , internal and border security , counter - terrorism , and surveillance as well as investigating some other types of grave crimes . It is headquartered in Lubyanka Square , Moscow ' s centre , in the main building of the former KGB . The Director of the FSB since 2008 is army general Aleksandr Bortnikov . The immediate predecessor of the FSB was the Federal Counterintelligence Service ( FSK ) of Russia : on 12 April 1995 , Russian president Boris Yeltsin signed a law mandating a reorganization of the FSK , which resulted in the creation of the FSB . In 2003 , the FSB ' s responsibilities were widened by incorporating the previously independent Border Guard Service and a major part of the abolished Federal Agency of Government Communication and Information ( FAPSI ) . The two major structural components of the former KGB that remain administratively independent of the FSB are the Foreign Intelligence Service ( SVR ) and the State Guards ( FSO ) . Under the federal law , the FSB is a military service just like the Armed Forces , the MVD , the FSO , the SVR , the FSKN and EMERCOM ' s civil defence , but its commissioned officers do not normally wear military uniform . Overview . The FSB is mainly responsible for internal security of the Russian state , counterespionage , and the fight against organized crime , terrorism , and drug smuggling . Since 2003 , when the Federal Border Guards Service was incorporated to the FSB , it has also been responsible for overseeing border security . The FSB is engaged mostly in domestic affairs , while espionage duties are responsibility of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service . However , the FSB also includes the FAPSI agency , which conducts electronic surveillance abroad . All law enforcement and intelligence agencies in Russia work under the guidance of FSB , if needed . The FSB combines functions and powers similar to those exercised by the United States FBI National Security Branch , Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) , the Federal Protective Service , the National Security Agency ( NSA ) , U . S . Customs and Border Protection , United States Coast Guard , and partly the Drug Enforcement Administration . The FSB employs about 66 , 200 uniformed staff , including about 4 , 000 special forces troops . It also employs about 160 , 000 – 200 , 000 border guards . Under Article 32 of the Federal Constitutional Law " On the Government of the Russian Federation " , the FSB head answers directly to the RF president and the FSB director is the RF president ' s appointment , though he is a member of the RF government which is headed by the Chairman of Government ; he also , " ex officio " , is a permanent member of the Security Council of Russia presided over by the president and chairman of the of Russia . History . Initial reorganization of the KGB . The Federal Security Service is one of the successor organisations of the Soviet Committee of State Security ( KGB ) . Following the attempted coup of 1991 — in which some KGB units as well as the KGB head Vladimir Kryuchkov played a major part — the KGB was dismantled and ceased to exist from November 1991 . In December 1991 , two government agencies answerable to the Russian president were created by president Yeltsin ' s decrees on the basis of the relevant main directorates of the defunct KGB : Foreign Intelligence Service ( SVR , the former First Main Directorate ) and the Federal Agency of Government Communications and Information ( FAPSI , merging the functions of the former 8th Main Directorate and 16th Main Directorate of the KGB ) . In January 1992 , another new institution , the Ministry of Security took over domestic and border security responsibilities . Following the 1993 coup attempt against President Boris Yeltsin , the Ministry of Security was reorganized on 21 December 1993 into the Federal Counter - Intelligence Service ( FSK ) . The FSK was headed by Sergei Stepashin . Before the start of the main military activities of the First Chechen War the FSK was responsible for the covert operations against the separatists led by Dzhokhar Dudayev . Creation of the FSB . In 1995 , the FSK was renamed and reorganized into the Federal Security Service ( FSB ) by the Federal Law of 3 April 1995 , " On the Organs of the Federal Security Service in the Russian Federation " . The FSB reforms were rounded out by decree No . 633 , signed by Boris Yeltsin on 23 June 1995 . The decree made the tasks of the FSB more specific , giving the FSB substantial rights to conduct cryptographic work , and described the powers of the FSB director . The number of deputy directors was increased to 8 : 2 first deputies , 5 deputies responsible for departments and directorates and 1 deputy director heading the Moscow City and Moscow regional directorate . Yeltsin appointed Colonel - General Mikhail Ivanovich Barsukov as the new director of the FSB . In 1998 Yeltsin appointed as director of the FSB Vladimir Putin , a KGB veteran who would later succeed Yeltsin as federal president . Putin was reluctant to take over the directorship , but once appointed conducted a thorough reorganization , which included the dismissal of most of the FSB ' s top personnel . Putin appointed Nikolai Patrushev as the head of FSB in 1999 . Role in the Second Chechen War . After the main military offensive of the Second Chechen War ended and the separatists changed tactics to guerilla warfare , overall command of the federal forces in Chechnya was transferred from the military to the FSB in January 2001 . While the army lacked technical means of tracking the guerrilla groups , the FSB suffered from insufficient human intelligence due its inability to build networks of agents and informants . In the autumn of 2002 , the separatists launched a massive campaign of terrorism against the Russian civilians , including the Dubrovka theatre attack . The inability of the federal forces to conduct efficient counter - terrorist operations led to the government to transfer the responsibility of " maintaining order " in Chechnya from the FSB to the Ministry of Internal Affairs ( MVD ) in July 2003 . The Putin reforms . After becoming President , Vladimir Putin launched a major reorganization of the FSB . First , the FSB was placed under direct control of the President by a decree issued on 17 May 2000 . Internal structure of the agency was reformed by a decree signed on 17 June 2000 . In the resulting structure , the FSB was to have a director , a first deputy director and nine other deputy directors , including one state secretary and the chiefs of six departments : Economic Security Department , Counterintelligence Department , Organizational and Personnel Service , Department of activity provision , Department for Analysis , Forecasting and Strategic Planning , Department for Protection of the Constitutional System and the Fight against Terrorism . In 2003 , the agency ' s responsibilities were considerably widened . The Border Guard Service of Russia , with its staff of 210 , 000 , was integrated to the FSB via a decree was signed on 11 March 2003 . The merger was completed by 1 July 2003 . In addition , The Federal Agency of Government Communication and Information ( FAPSI ) was abolished and the FSB was granted a major part of its functions , while other parts went to the Ministry of Defense . Among the reasons for this strengthening of the FSB were enhanced need for security of after increased terror attacks against Russian civilians starting from the Moscow theater hostage crisis ; the need to end the permanent infighting between the FSB , FAPSI and the Border Guards due to their overlapping functions and the need for more efficient response to migration , drug trafficking and illegal arms trading . It has also been pointed out , that the FSB was the only power base of the new president , and the restructuring therefore strengthened Putin ' s position ( see Political groups under Vladimir Putin ' s presidency ) . On 28 June 2004 in a speech to high - ranking FSB officers , Putin emphasized three major tasks of the agency : neutralizing foreign espionage , safeguarding economic and financial security of the country and combating organized crime . In September 2006 , the FSB was shaken by a major reshuffle , which , combined with some earlier reassignments ( most remarkably , those of FSB Deputy Directors Yury Zaostrovtsev and Vladimir Anisimov in 2004 and 2005 , respectively ) , were widely believed to be linked to the Three Whales Corruption Scandal that had slowly unfolded since 2000 . Some analysts considered it to be an attempt to undermine FSB Director Nikolay Patrushev ' s influence , as it was Patrushev ' s team from the Karelian KGB Directorate of the late 1980s – early 1990s that had suffered most and he had been on vacations during the event . By 2008 , the agency had one Director , two First Deputy Directors and 5 Deputy Directors . It had the following 9 divisions : The fight against terrorism . Starting from the Moscow theater hostage crisis in 2002 , Russia was faced with increased levels of Islamist terrorism . The FSB , being the main agency responsible for counter - terrorist operations , was in the front line in the fight against terror . During the Moscow theater siege and the Beslan school siege , FSB ' s Spetsnaz units Alpha Group and Vympel played a key role in the hostage release operations . However , their performance was criticised due to the high number of hostage casualties . In 2006 , the FSB scored a major success in its counter - terrorist efforts when it successfully killed Shamil Basayev , the mastermind behind the Beslan tragedy and several other high - profile terrorist acts . According to the FSB , the operation was planned over six months and made possible due to the FSB ' s increased activities in foreign countries that were supplying arms to the terrorists . Basayev was tracked via the surveillance of this arms trafficking . Basayev and other militants were preparing to carry out a terrorist attack in Ingushetia when FSB agents destroyed their convoy ; 12 militants were killed . During the last years of the Vladimir Putin ' s second presidency ( 2006 – 2008 ) , terrorist attacks in Russia dwindled , falling from 257 in 2005 to 48 in 2007 . Military analyst Vitaly Shlykov praised the effectiveness of Russia ' s security agencies , saying that the experience learned in Chechnya and Dagestan had been key to the success . In 2008 , the American Carnegie Endowment ' s Foreign Policy magazine named Russia as " the worst place to be a terrorist " and highlighted especially Russia ' s willingness to prioritize national security over civil rights . By 2010 , Russian forces , led by the FSB , had managed to eliminate out the top leadership of the Chechen insurgency , except for Dokka Umarov . Increased terrorism and expansion of the FSB ' s powers . Starting from 2009 , the level of terrorism in Russia increased again . Particularly worrisome was the increase of suicide attacks . While between February 2005 and August 2008 , no civilians were killed in such attacks , in 2008 at least 17 were killed and in 2009 the number rose to 45 . In March 2010 , Islamist militants organised the 2010 Moscow Metro bombings , which killed 40 people . One of the two blasts took place at Lubyanka station , near the FSB headquarters . Militant leader Doku Umarov — dubbed " Russia ' s Osama Bin Laden " — took responsibility for the attacks . In July 2010 , President Dmitry Medvedev expanded the FSB ' s powers in its fight against terrorism . FSB officers received the power to issue warnings to citizens on actions that could lead to committing crimes and arrest people for 15 days if they fail to comply with legitimate orders given by the officers . The bill was harshly criticized by human rights organizations . Role . Counterintelligence . In 2011 , the FSB exposed 199 foreign spies , including 41 professional spies and 158 agents employed by foreign intelligence services . The number has risen in recent years : in 2006 the FSB reportedly caught about 27 foreign intelligence officers and 89 foreign agents . Comparing the number of exposed spies historically , the then - FSB Director Nikolay Kovalyov said in 1996 : " There has never been such a number of spies arrested by us since the time when German agents were sent in during the years of World War II . " The 2011 figure is similar to what was reported in 1995 - 1996 , when around 400 foreign intelligence agents were uncovered during the two - year period . In a high - profile case of foreign espionage , the FSB said in February 2012 that an engineer working at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome , Russia ' s main space center for military launches , had been convicted to 13 years in prison on charges of state treason . A court judged that the engineer had sold information about testing of new Russian strategic missile systems to the American CIA . An increasing number of scientists have been accused of espionage and illegal technology exports by the FSB during the last decade : researcher Igor Sutyagin , physicist Valentin Danilov , physical chemist Oleg Korobeinichev , academician Oskar Kaibyshev , and physicist Yury Ryzhov . Ecologist and journalist Alexander Nikitin , who worked with the Bellona Foundation , was accused of espionage . He published material exposing hazards posed by the Russian Navy ' s nuclear fleet . He was acquitted in 1999 after spending several years in prison ( his case was sent for re - investigation 13 times while he remained in prison ) . Other cases of prosecution are the cases of investigative journalist and ecologist Grigory Pasko , Vladimir Petrenko who described danger posed by military chemical warfare stockpiles , and Nikolay Shchur , chairman of the Snezhinskiy Ecological Fund . Other arrested people include Viktor Orekhov , a former KGB officer who assisted Soviet dissidents , Vladimir Kazantsev who disclosed illegal purchases of eavesdropping devices from foreign firms , and Vil Mirzayanov who had written that Russia was working on a nerve gas weapon . Counter - terrorism . In 2011 , the FSB prevented 94 " crimes of a terrorist nature , " including eight terrorist attacks . In particular , the agency foiled a planned suicide bombing in Moscow on New Year ' s Eve . However , the agency failed to prevent terrorists perpetrating the Domodedovo International Airport bombing . Over the years , FSB and affiliated state security organizations have killed all presidents of the separatist Chechen Republic of Ichkeria including Dzhokhar Dudaev , Zelimkhan Yandarbiev , Aslan Maskhadov , and Abdul - Khalim Saidullaev . Just before his death , Saidullaev claimed that the Russian government " treacherously " killed Maskhadov , after inviting him to " talks " and promising his security " at the highest level . " During the Moscow theater hostage crisis and Beslan school hostage crisis , all hostage takers were killed on the spot by FSB spetsnaz forces . Only one of the suspects , Nur - Pashi Kulayev , survived and was convicted later by the court . It is reported that more than 100 leaders of terrorist groups have been killed during 119 operations on North Caucasus during 2006 . On 28 July 2006 the FSB presented a list of 17 terrorist organizations recognized by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation , to Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper , which published the list that day . The list had been available previously , but only through individual request . Commenting on the list , Yuri Sapunov , head of anti - terrorism at the FSB , named three main criteria necessary for organizations to be listed . Federal Security Service ( Russia ) ( section ) Alexandru KOCZYNSKI ROMANIA 2006 Foreign intelligence . According to some unofficial sources , since 1999 , the FSB has also been tasked with the intelligence - gathering on the territory of the CIS countries , wherein the SVR is legally forbidden from conducting espionage under the inter - government agreements . Such activity is in line with Article 8 of the Federal Law on the FSB . Targeted killing . In the summer of 2006 , the FSB was given the legal power to engage in targeted killing , and hunt down and kill terrorism suspects overseas if ordered to do so by Russia ' s president . Border protection . The Federal Border Guard Service ( FPS ) has been part of the FSB since 2003 . Russia has of sea and land borders , of which is with Kazakhstan , and with China . One kilometer ( 1 , 100 yard ) of border protection costs around 1 million rubles per year . Export control . The FSB is engaged in the development of Russia ' s export control strategy and examines drafts of international agreements related to the transfer of dual - use and military commodities and technologies . Its primary role in the nonproliferation sphere is to collect information to prevent the illegal export of controlled nuclear technology and materials . Intimidation of foreign diplomats and journalists . The FSB has been accused by The Guardian of using psychological techniques to intimidate western diplomatic staff and journalists , with the intention of making them curtail their work in Russia early . The techniques allegedly involve entering targets ' houses , moving household items around , replacing items with similar ( but slightly different ) items , and even sending sex toys to a male target ' s wife , all with the intention of confusing and scaring the target . Guardian journalist , Luke Harding , claims to have been the subject of such techniques . Organization . Below the nationwide level , the FSB has regional offices in the federal subjects of Russia . It also has administrations in the armed forces and other military institutions . Sub - departments exist for areas such as aviation , special training centers , forensic expertise , military medicine , etc . Structure of the Federal Office ( incomplete ) : Besides the services ( departments ) and directorates of the federal office , the territorial directorates of FSB in the federal subects are also subordinate to it . Of these , St . Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast Directorate of FSB and its predecessors ( historically covering both Leningrad / Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast ) have played especially important roles in the history of this organization , as many of the officers of the Directorate , including Vladimir Putin and Nikolay Patrushev , later assumed important positions within the federal FSB office or other government bodies . After the last Chief of the Soviet time , Anatoly Kurkov , the St . Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast Directorate were led by Sergei Stepashin ( 29 November 1991 – 1992 ) , Viktor Cherkesov ( 1992 – 1998 ) , Alexander Grigoryev ( 1 October 1998 – 5 January 2001 ) , Sergei Smirnov ( 5 January 2001 – June 2003 ) , Alexander Bortnikov ( June 2003 – March 2004 ) and Yury Ignashchenkov ( since March 2004 ) . Directors of the FSB . On 20 June 1996 , Boris Yeltsin fired FSB Director Mikhail Barsukov and appointed Nikolay Kovalyov as acting Director and later Director of the FSB . Aleksandr Bortnikov took over on 12 May 2008 . Criticism . Political role in Putin ' s Russia . The FSB has been criticised for corruption and human rights violations . Some Kremlin critics such as Yulia Latynina and Alexander Litvinenko have claimed that the FSB is engaged in suppression of internal dissent ; Litvinenko died in 2006 as a result of polonium poisoning . A number of opposition lawmakers and investigative journalists were murdered in the 2000s while investigating corruption and other alleged crimes perpertrated by FSB officers : Sergei Yushenkov , Yuri Shchekochikhin , Galina Starovoitova , Anna Politkovskaya , Alexander Litvinenko , Paul Klebnikov ( US ) , Nadezhda Chaikova , Nina Yefimova , and others . The FSB has been further criticised by some for failure to bring Islamist terrorism in Russia under control . In the mid - 2000s , the pro - Kremlin Russian sociologist claimed that FSB played a dominant role in the country ' s political , economic and even cultural life . Former FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko , along with a series of other authors such as Yury Felshtinsky , David Satter , Boris Kagarlitsky , Vladimir Pribylovsky , claimed in the early 2000s that the 1999 apartment bombings in Moscow and other Russian cities were a false flag attack coordinated by the FSB in order to win public support for a new full - scale war in Chechnya and boost former FSB Director Vladimir Putin ' s , then the prime minister , popularity in the lead - up to parliamentary elections and presidential transfer of power in Russia later that year . In his book " Mafia State " , Luke Harding , the Moscow correspondent for " The Guardian " from to 2007 to 2011 and a fierce critic of Russia , alleges that the FSB subjected him to continual psychological harassment , with the aim of either coercing him into practicing self - censorship in his reporting , or to leave the country entirely . He says that FSB used techniques known as Zersetzung ( literally " corrosion " or " undermining " ) which were perfected by the East German Stasi .