Oswald in Minsk

[David Lifton]

The book in question is Oswald: Russian Episode. The author is Professor Ernst P. Titovets, who was a medical student when he met LHO. According to the back cover blurbs on my signed copy, LHO described him in the "historic diary" as "my oldest existing acquaintance ... a friend of mine who speaks English very well." Both Edward Epstein and Norman Mailer have confirmed this characterization -- for whatever that's worth. The book is published by Mon Litera, located in ... wait for it ... Minsk.

I haven't read it yet, but when I do it will be with my deep politics radar on "HIGH" setting.

BTW, Robert Webster told a personal acquaintance of mine -- one of his care givers in a New England medical facility during the 1970s -- that Marina had been his wife.

Several months ago someone called me out of the blue asking if he could send me a copy of this book. Not wishing to offend I said yes. So I too have a copy but have not read it. I was waiting for some reviews before I dived in as it instinctively struck me as a disinfo book.

Dawn

". . . it instinctively struck me as a disinfo book. . "

So sorry, Dawn Meredith, but your instincts are wrong.

Ernst Titovets' book - OSWALD: Russian Episode--is a meticulously assembled (and very nicely written) account of Lee Oswald during a 20 month period in the USSR, from the day Ernst first met him around September 24th, 1960, until the last day he saw him, just prior to May 22, 1962.

If you want an accurate account of Lee Oswald after he returned from the USSR, one must read the manuscript of George DeMohrenshieldt. And if you want a comparably accurate account of Oswald in the USSR, this book is a must read.

So set aside your prejudices and attempt, find a comfortable chair, and prepare to read a really interesting account of what Lee Oswald was really like, as seen by his best friend in the Soviet Union.

You know when I first realized how bright Oswald must be? It was over 40 years ago, when, thumbing through the 26 volumes, I came across a letter that Titovets had written Oswald in late October, 1963. It was the second of two letters, and its in the 26 volumes. But here's the first:

"This summer I was in the Crimea. The most exciting experience I had was the underwater sport. I used to go with an aqualung this time. It was wonderful underwater.

"I saw Inna and gave her your regard(s) She is OK. Still unmarried.

Our friends . . .always ask me about your letters and [send] their regards to you.

So: All the best.

Your friend,

Erick.

Then came this letter, dated October 28, 1963 (FBI Item D-120) which probably arrived around November 10, plus or minus. Ernst wanted two textbooks in molecular biology, and sought Lee's help in obtaining them in America:


October 28, 1963

Dear Aleck,

I hope everything is O.K. I mean, Marina and you. It seems to me that I must ask you to look for these two books.

1. Szent-Gyorgyi, A.
Introduction to a Submolecular Biology. . .

2. White and Handler
Principles of Biochemistry
McGraw-Hill, New York 1959

I think I'll be able to recompense you (somehow) for your efforts.

My best regards to Marina and June, and. . . ? (Ernst knew another baby was on the way).

Hope to meet you soon.

Your friend,
Erick

(See CD 1066 for the FBI reports on these letters).

These letters were found by Detective Stovall of the DPD in Ruth Paine's home (or garage) and to those DPD thick-heads, probably suggested subversive activity. But I was struck by the fact that the books that Titovets was requesting were used in graduate courses at Cornell. And I remember thinking: Oswald must have some pretty bright friends to be requesting the same books I saw fellow students using just a few years back.

And I have never changed my mind on that subjectespecially when it came to Ernst Titovets.

Of course, I did not have the benefit of your wonderful "instincts," Dawn; and to quote you again:

"". . . it instinctively struck me as a disinfo book. . "

Oh, sure, Dawn; Of course. Obviously. And where, may I ask, are you getting these "instincts" from, counselorthe Jim DiEugenio School of Molecular Biology, perhaps?

DSL
6/21/13; 2:50 PM PDT
Los Angeles, California

[David Lifton]

Marina's fluency in English is obvious from this January 1964 interview, at a time when she supposedly needed translators during questioning by authorities.



I suspect Marina was a "honey trap" assigned to Oswald so she could eventually go to the US with him and become a Soviet sleeper agent. She probably never did anything for the Soviets before the assassination, and they quickly cut her loose after 11/22/63, which is why she had to become so cooperative with US authorities.

Tracy,
Marina was a smart woman, but Oswald would not speak to her in English. He wanted to use her as his "conversationalist" and to preserve his own fluency in Russian. After the assassination, she had a sharp learning curve, upwards. Nonetheless, her vocabulary was limited--and her grammar and syntax was rather primitive. (This improved rapidly with the passage of time, and then she took the Michigan Course, and there was additional rapid improvement).

Bottom line: the authorities would of course want to interview Marina in Russian--no doubt about that; but that did not mean (and does not mean) that she couldn't answer questions in basic English, and certainly so by mid-January, 1964.

FWIW: I do not believe Marina had any connection with Soviet intelligence, nor do I believe she was a honey trap. Originally, I entertained all these possibilities, but after I met her, and had many conversations with her, it became clear to me that none of that was true. Of course, I can well understand why some people would believe otherwise--and to do justice to that discussion would require some rather long additional posts. No time for that, just now, but its an interesting subject, and leads to much interesting discussion.

DSL
6/21/13; 3:20 PM PDT
Los Angeles, California

[Tracy Riddle]

David, I worked with several Russian and Ukrainian engineers at a company in the late 90s, and though they had taken English classes growing up in Russia (and some had lived in the US for several years), only one of them spoke English as well as Marina did in that video from January 1964. I'm not certain that Marina was a honey trap or a sleeper agent, but her apparent contact with Robert Webster, and the ease with which Soviet authorities let her marry a foreigner and leave the country, are troubling.

I don't understand why Armstrong tries so hard to convince us that LHO never spoke Russian in the USSR, since he doesn't say that Oswald couldn't speak the language. In fact, he believes that Harvey (the man who defected) was probably from an Eastern European refugee family and already knew some Russian before he joined the Marines.

I don't agree with all of Armstrong's conclusions, but he has a lot of information in his book that needs to be reckoned with.

[Magda Hassan]

David, I worked with several Russian and Ukrainian engineers at a company in the late 90s, and though they had taken English classes growing up in Russia (and some had lived in the US for several years), only one of them spoke English as well as Marina did in that video from January 1964. I'm not certain that Marina was a honey trap or a sleeper agent, but her apparent contact with Robert Webster, and the ease with which Soviet authorities let her marry a foreigner and leave the country, are troubling.

I don't understand why Armstrong tries so hard to convince us that LHO never spoke Russian in the USSR, since he doesn't say that Oswald couldn't speak the language. In fact, he believes that Harvey (the man who defected) was probably from an Eastern European refugee family and already knew some Russian before he joined the Marines.

I don't agree with all of Armstrong's conclusions, but he has a lot of information in his book that needs to be reckoned with.

Yes the Webster connection is intruiging.
I am not at all surprised at the Soviet authorities allowing her to leave the country regardless if she was a sleeper or not. I am surprised at the ease in which she was allowed to enter the US though. As I am amazed at the speed in which Oswald the traitor and Soviet defector was also greatly assisted in his return passage.

[Tracy Riddle]

Actually that doesn't surprise me at all, Magda, because Oswald almost certainly wasn't a genuine defector. And the FBI seems to have kept an eye on Marina once she was in the US.

[Magda Hassan]

I agree but not according to the 'official' lone nut story.

[David Lifton]

The life of Oswald in the USSR is surrounded by a cloud of mystery. I'll try to raise some questions:
1. Why he was sent in Minsk Belarusia, miles away from Russia?
2. Why he was sent to work in an electronics factory and not in a milk or clothing factory?
3. Why his supervisor at the factory was one Alexander Romanovich Ziger with possible CIA connections?
4. How come and Marina Prusakova an educated woman,who had an uncle in the interior ministry security service
fell immediately in love with Oswald?
5. Why Marina, a niece of a security officer was allowed to marry an American defecor?
6. Why the Soviet authorities gave her a visa to travel to USA with an American defector
when her uncle could have stopped the visa?
I can only think that all the above mysteries were part of an elaborate spy game involving illegals and false defectors
and it is probably an indication of what Charles Drago calls Supra-national cooperation between factions of CIA and KGB.
Any suggestions?

FWIW: Having been intrigued by most of these questions for many years, here are my own comments and reactions:

1. Why he was sent in Minsk Belarusia, miles away from Russia?

DSL Reponse: mainly because the Soviet leadership, in Moscow, did not want Oswald hanging around Moscow, where he could stage additional acts of "high drama" (my quotes). So Minsk--525 miles from Moscow--was deemed just the right spot. (And you will find corroboration for what I'm saying here, in Nosenko's HSCA testimony)

2. Why he was sent to work in an electronics factory and not in a milk or clothing factory?

DSL RESPONSE: Because (IMHO) Oswald indicated multiple times that he had been stationed at Atsugi. Putting him in an "electronics" environment permitted "tests" to be staged, as to whether he was up to something. (I think there is support for what I'm saying here in some of Mailer's interviews--see Oswald's Tale).

3. Why his supervisor at the factory was one Alexander Romanovich Ziger with possible CIA connections?

DSL RESPONSE: It would be critically important if Ziger was in any way connected to the CIA. But what is the evidence for that? I'm not saying he wasn't sympathetic to the USA, and didn't regret having come back to the USSR (he and his wife certainly did regret that). But is there any evidence of a CIA connection? If so, I'd appreciate knowing about it.

4. How come and Marina Prusakova an educated woman,who had an uncle in the interior ministry security service
fell immediately in love with Oswald?

DSL RESPONSE: Marina definitely did not fall "immediately in love" with Oswald. He went into the hospital for an ear problem (in late March, 1961) and she (Marina)--who had met him at a dance on 3/17--then visited him. I don't think he had a single date with her, and had never even kissed her. Nonetheless, it was he--Lee Oswald himself--who at that point (in the first week of April, 1961) was promoting the idea, during a hospital visit of Marina, that she consider marrying him. She acceded, and they took out a marriage license in mid-April. From everything I know, it was Lee Oswald was the moving force behind the marriage. In fact, based on interviews with a Marina confidant--in Russia--Marina complained bitterly that she did not know why Lee married her, because he was obviously not in love with her. She was most upset about that, in fact, and felt she had been deceived.

5. Why Marina, a niece of a security officer was allowed to marry an American defecor?

DSL RESPONSE: A reasonable question; all we know for sure is that they took out a marriage license in mid-April, and it was (seemingly) routinely approved.

6. Why the Soviet authorities gave her a visa to travel to USA with an American defector
when her uncle could have stopped the visa?

DSL RESPONSE: As far as I know, her uncle (Ilya Prusakov) stayed out of it. Completely. But the real question --and the most important question--is: how did she get a Soviet exit visa so fast? I don't think this is a random event. And I assume there was some sort of bribe, or some under-the-table goings on. I do not believe this happened by accident, or that it was just routine. Not at all.

Bottom line: Its question #6 that is really the important one; and that holds the key to whether someone on the U.S. side "bargained" with someone on the USSR side, to get that USSR exit visa issued as promptly as it was. (FYI: Marina learned she had the visa--much to her astonishment--on 12/25/61. See McMillan for details, but Marina's testimony (I believe) as well).

DSL
6/23/13; 6:10 PM PDT
Los Angeles, California

[Magda Hassan]

There were several reasons people were unable to travel in the former USSR. But most people are unaware of what these may have been as they see all things Soviet through a western propaganda lens. One reason people might be denied travel permission is that they have not yet done their required time in their occupation for which they have been trained. Marina had done her time as a pharmacist and there would be no reason to stop her on this basis alone. Another reason people would not travel to the west is because the west did not accept Soviet Roubles and it was hugely difficult to exchange for foreign currency so most didn't and took holidays in the Eastern Block and Cuba where they didn't have this problem. As Marina was going to be a dependant of Oswald this did not matter in her case. The USSR government could have for some reason forbidden Marina to travel to the US but she was really for all appearances a nobody. She had no special position or responsibilities. At this stage of her life she was a mother and out of the work force. She held no particular skills that could not be done by some one else with similar training. She held no great state secrets. Having Marina move to another country was not going to be a huge loss for the USSR or compromise them in any way and they get rid of the awkward and suspicious Oswald too. But in her leaving she may have been of use to the Soviet authorities in giving information back to them. Wittingly or unwittingly.

Although there is still that intruging Webster connection with her.....

[Jan Klimkowski]

There were several reasons people were unable to travel in the former USSR. But most people are unaware of what these may have been as they see all things Soviet through a western propaganda lens. One reason people might be denied travel permission is that they have not yet done their required time in their occupation for which they have been trained. Marina had done her time as a pharmacist and there would be no reason to stop her on this basis alone. Another reason people would not travel to the west is because the west did not accept Soviet Roubles and it was hugely difficult to exchange for foreign currency so most didn't and took holidays in the Eastern Block and Cuba where they didn't have this problem. As Marina was going to be a dependant of Oswald this did not matter in her case. The USSR government could have for some reason forbidden Marina to travel to the US but she was really for all appearances a nobody. She had no special position or responsibilities. At this stage of her life she was a mother and out of the work force. She held no particular skills that could not be done by some one else with similar training. She held no great state secrets. Having Marina move to another country was not going to be a huge loss for the USSR or compromise them in any way and they get rid of the awkward and suspicious Oswald too. But in her leaving she may have been of use to the Soviet authorities in giving information back to them. Wittingly or unwittingly.

Although there is still that intruging Webster connection with her.....

Magda - you make some good points but, with respect, I would have expected the USSR to have been far tougher on the criteria.

My father was Polish and my mother is English, and the family were living near London in the 1960s. Around 1967, my dad's cousin, who was born and lived in communist Poland, was in her early twenties, was married with a five-year-old son, and had just been through Polish medical school to train as an anaesthetist. She decided to try to travel to England. The Polish communist authorities refused to allow her to travel with her son and husband, and my mother, as the English citizen, had to invite and "sponsor" her visit, guaranteeing that would have a place to live and would not be a financial drain on the state. The Polish authorities were so concerned at losing their investment in a newly trained doctor that they effectively kept her son hostage in Poland as a guarantor of her return.

As it turned out, my cousin decided to divorce her husband and marry a British citizen within weeks of arriving in England, and thus officially "defected". She retrained as a doctor in the British NHS, and her son was finally allowed out of Poland when he was eleven, six years later

My parents tell me that our house phone was clearly bugged, by some clunky sixties technology, and they suffered considerable difficulty whenever they tried to visit Poland in subsequent years.

In short, I am suspicious of the ease with which Marina was allowed to leave the USSR.

I am even more suspicious of the lack of officially disclosed debriefing of LHO and Marina, and the lack of official monitoring of this couple, after their arrival in the USA.

In my judgement, the official story is entirely without credibilty.

Recent revelations about the number of secret files on Oswald are far more credible than the official story.

The involvement of the emigre White Russain community in l'affair Oswald strongly suggests that LHO was being played. By more than one party.

[Charles Drago]

In re Webster: According a former personal friend who served as a social worker in the southeast Massachusetts care facility where Webster resided for a time and claimed to have developed a deep, mutually trusting relationship with him, Webster stated cogently that he had been married to Marina.

This was at a time when Webster was feigning (again, according to my friend) the inability to speak and would communicate only with a very select few.

The source of this info was/is a JFK assassination naif. The information was volunteered to me in a most sincere, nothing-to-gain manner when he/she learned of my interest in the case.

I believe the story -- the source's, that is.

As for Websters story ...