STALIN\'S SPY
Subtitle: RICHARD SORGE AND THE TOKYO ESPIONAGE RING
Publisher: I.B. TAURIS
Published: 1996
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 288
ISBN-13: 9781860640445
Subjects: Biography: general; Espionage & secret services; Inter-war period, 1918-1939; Second World War, 1939-1945; World history: Second World War
First sentence: THE EARLIEST existing photo of Richard Sorge shows an infant at eight months, astride a high round table, as if on a throne, eyeing the camera sternly.
Description: "Richard Sorge was one of the most successful international spies of modern times. Born to a Russian mother and German father, he ran a highly sophisticated espionage ring under the noses of Japan's infamous secret police. He penetrated the German embassy in Tokyo as a trusted Nazi journalist and rapidly established himself as a confidant of the ambassador, privy to highly secret information of a military and political nature relayed from Berlin. From 1933 until he was finally caught late in 1941, Sorge transmitted a steady stream of priceless information to Red Army intelligence (GRU). His group of dedicated men and women not only kept Stalin informed about German and Japanese intentions, but also exerted considerable influence on decisions made by both governments." "Ultimately abandoned to his fate by Stalin, Sorge became the first European to be sentenced to death by a Japanese court. After a prolonged ordeal, he was executed in Sugamo prison in 1944."--BOOK JACKET.