The book ‘Ihor Smeshko. Unfinished Dossier of the Intelligence General…’ by Viktor Smielov is now available in English on Amazon!

The publication ‘Ihor Smeshko. Unfinished Dossier of the Intelligence General…’ is an English-language version of the Ukrainian book “Ігор Смешко. Незакінчене досьє генерала розвідки…”, which is available for free on the official website of the Conservative-Democratic Political Party ‘Strength and Honor’.

This book tells about the life and professional path of Colonel General Ihor Smeshko and the role he played in the key historical moments of the formation and development of the Ukrainian state.

Since the first days of Ukraine’s independence, Ihor Smeshko has been devoting all his skills and experience to serving the state. Despite significant personal risks to his life and career, he openly confronts influential structures, exposes corruption schemes of high-ranking officials and oligarchs, and prevents international scandals and significant financial losses for the country.

During the Orange Revolution, Smeshko refused to take sides with any of the candidates. He considers himself a public servant whose loyalty lies primarily with the state, the constitutional order, the preservation of peace, and the physical protection of all citizens. Smeshko firmly believes that not a single child’s tear or drop of innocent blood justifies even the noblest aspirations of ‘improving the world through revolution.’ He fulfills all his tasks honorably and achieves the respect and trust of many of the world’s most famous and influential leaders.

The main topics of the book are:

✔ International cooperation between Ukraine and the United States – Ukraine’s first-ever military, naval, air, and defense attaché to the United States. Coordinator of signing the Memorandum of Military Cooperation between the Ministries of Defense of the two countries in 1993. Ukraine was the first Warsaw Pact country with which the Pentagon signed such an agreement. It opened up the possibility of holding the first joint military exercises with the US in Ukraine and is currently the only legal basis for cooperation between the two defense ministries.

✔Development of Ukraine’s military and security structure – since 1995, Ihor Smeshko has played a key role in developing the Intelligence Committee under the President of Ukraine. Since 1997, he was the Chief of the Main Intelligence Directorate (DIU) of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine (1997-2000). Thanks to his efforts, Ukraine’s intelligence agencies received the first National Intelligence Program, a separate funding budget approved by the Parliament of Ukraine, and the first Law of Ukraine, ‘On Intelligence Agencies of Ukraine.’

✔Fighting international crime – in April 1998, at a hearing in the US Congress on the reports of Louis Freeh, Director of the FBI, and Ihor Smeshko, Chairman of the Intelligence Committee under the President of Ukraine, the only favorable resolution on the success of cooperation between the intelligence services of the two countries was adopted.

✔Defending the reputation of the Ukrainian state in the international arena – in 2002, he made efforts to end Ukraine’s political isolation in the West and convinced the joint US-British commission that Ukraine was not involved in the possible supply of the Kolchuga passive sensors to Iraq.

✔The EU and NATO – during I. Smeshko’s tenure as head of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) (2002-2003), the NSDC apparatus coordinated the development and adoption by the Parliament of the first Law of Ukraine, ‘On the Fundamentals of National Security of Ukraine’. For the first time, it identified Ukraine’s future membership in NATO as one of its national priorities. It also envisaged Ukraine’s integration into the European political, economic, legal, and security space.

✔Reform of the Security Service of Ukraine – The first and only successful reform of the Security Service of Ukraine took place under the leadership of Ihor Smeshko. In 2003-2004, almost the entire top management of the Security Service of Ukraine was replaced. Internal investigations and criminal proceedings were initiated against some of its former leaders. After the dismissal of I. Smeshko from the post of the Head of the Security Service of Ukraine in February 2005, his reforms were halted. High-profile criminal proceedings opened by the Security Service of Ukraine under his watch were either dismissed or closed.

✔The Orange Revolution – under the leadership of Ihor Smeshko, the Security Service of Ukraine stopped an attempt to disperse the Maidan Uprising by force and prevented bloodshed among the participants of the Revolution. A 15,000-strong column of armed internal troops was stopped on its way to Kyiv.

The book is based on archival materials and interviews, giving the reader an understanding of how Ihor Smeshko worked to strengthen the security of the Ukrainian state and its reputation in the international arena and why this experience is important for the country’s future.

The book contains many unique photographs and photo documents that help to understand better the historical context and professional activities of Ihor Smeshko.

The book also contains numerous comments from prominent politicians, military officers, and experts on Ihor Smeshko’s work, successes, and achievements.

The book concludes with a selection of quotes from interviews, speeches, and publications by Ihor Smeshko over the years.

The publication will be of interest not only to professional politicians, political scientists, and experts in international relations but also to historians, intelligence officers, and a wide range of readers interested in the history of Ukrainian special services, their complex path of formation, and reform, as well as many significant events in the modern history of Ukraine.

We thank the author, Viktor Smielov, for his contribution to the factual coverage of the true history of the formation of Ukraine’s special services, and in particular, the Ukrainian military intelligence, and the contribution of Ihor Smeshko!