Yakov Pevzner – Japan specialist from the "Shanghai Five"

yaKoV peVZner –

Japan specialist from the "shanGhai fiVe"

it happens that in a person's life, the main component of his/her biography is a certain episode, which takes very little time. And then a person lives with memories of this important event, about that period of time that projected his/her biography for the rest of his/her life. And already, it seems, his/her life will not be marked by anything more vivid...

In the biography of a native of Gomel, Yakov Aleksandrovich Pevzner (Khatskelevich), who was born in Gomel on January 15, 1914), there really was such a vivid episode that would be enough for several lives. Documentary sources testify about him rather succinctly: "In 1941 he was sent to China. Offi cially worked as director of the organization "Savexportkhleb". He was a member of the "Shanghai Five" of the Soviet intelligence officers. At the end of 1942, he was arrested by the Japanese gendarmerie. He went through prison and torture. He was exchanged and returned to the USSR..."

For those who don't know, let us explain about the "Shanghai Five". In China, there was an extensive network of the Central Intelligence Directorate of the Armed Forces of the USSR. It wasn't created in one day. And with the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, of course, the Soviet Union was especially interested in the activities of the Japanese militarists who occupied the Chinese provinces, directly – Shanghai. But the Japanese did not sleep in a hat either, so to speak. As a result of a series of arrests, they infl icted signifi cant damage on the Soviet military intelligence. Several Shanghai stations were destroyed. Including – the residency of the Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Navy, headed by Yakov Pevzner. A total of 17 intelligence operatives were detained. But only five of them were citizens of the USSR. After interrogation and brutal torture, a Japanese military tribunal sentenced everyone to death. But only one Chinese man was shot as a representative of a country with which Japan was at war. The rest were replaced for a term of two to ten years in prison. And on February 23, 1945 (a symbolic date – the birthday of the Armed Forces of the USSR), negotiations were held between the USSR and Japan, as a result of which on March 7 the Soviet spies were exchanged for five Japanese citizens, arrested in the USSR.

Returning to Moscow, Yakov Pevzner went to work at the Institute of World Economy and International Affairs. It is worth noting that even before the war, Jacob Pevsner entered the Institute of Philosophy, Literature and History. Aft er the fi rst semester, he transferred to the Japanese faculty of the Moscow Institute of Oriental Studies. He graduated from this institute, then graduated from the Institute of World Economy and World Politics. Aft er defence of his thesis, our compatriot was awarded the title of candidate of economic sciences. By the way, the young man received his degree on the eve of the Great Patriotic War – June 11, 1941... In 1947 the institute was liquidated. Some of his employees (including Yakov Aleksandrovich) were transferred to the department of capitalist countries of the Institute of Economics of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

Since 1956, our compatriot worked at the Institute of International Economics and International Relations, where he managed Japanese studies. In 1961 he defended his doctoral thesis and received the title of professor. He was the head of the group for the study of Japan, the head of the department of economics of Western Europe and Japan, and later headed the department of Japan. In 1977, Yakov Pevzner was awarded the title of laureate of the USSR State Prize. Was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor. Th e

scientific zeal of the former intelligence officer was also noticed in Japan – he was awarded the Order of the "Sacred Treasure" of the III degree (this happened in 1994). Until the end of his life (Yakov Aleksandrovich died in 2003), the scientist held the position of chief researcher at the Institute of International Economics and International Relations, worked at the Center for Asia-Pacific Studies of this institute. In the 1990s, he worked on the theory of social democracy and criticism of communism and orthodox Marxism. And today Yakov Pevzner remains one of the most important Russian-Japanese scientists in the scientific world. It was our compatriot who created the school of Japanese scientists who reject the class approach and asserted strict scientific objectivity as the main criterion for evaluation of creative, scientific aspirations. Textbooks and monographs by Ya. Pevzner remain reference books for new generations of Japanese researchers. By the way, the military biography made Ya. Pevzner "restricted to travel abroad" for many decades. It was only in 1984 that Yakov Aleksandrovich visited Japan.

Doctor of Economics Yakov Pevzner is the author of books "Monopoly Capital in Japan" ("zaibatsu") during and after World War II" (1950), "Japan's Economy after World War II (1955)", "The State in economy of Japan"(1976), "State-monopoly capitalism and the theory of labor value"(1978), "The collapse of communism and modern social relations"(1999), "Introduction to the economic theory of social democracy"(2001)...

A Soviet spy and a Soviet, Russian economist lived a great life. Passed through all the trials of the twentieth century. Over the years, although Yakov Pevsner died relatively recently, much of his biography cannot be considered. But what remained in the memory of the descendants testifies to the value of his fate, the exceptional ability to work and courage of this person. So why not embody his name in the name of Yakov Aleksandrovich Pevzner Street in his native Gomel?

Ales Karlyukevich

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those memoraBle days...

Valentina Petrovna dared to tell about her military love, about her repressed father, about her friendly class, who came to the military registration and enlistment office in June 1941. And not only about that. It is very important for her to convey to today's generations the joy of a peaceful life. She gets it completely. He cooks, and regularly works out on exercise machines, and goes to the hairdresser's, and even plants a flowerbed under the window.

Veteran Valentina Baranova is well known in Grodno. She is an expected and beloved guest at various meetings, events and celebrations. Her name is included in the Book of Glory of Grodno Region. But not only the merits of this woman command great respect. She is also a very bright, positive person. I can hardly be mistaken if I express this opinion: anyone who has seen Valentina Petrovna at least once in his/her life is unlikely to forget this meeting. Thanks to the profession of a journalist, I have repeatedly had the opportunity to interview her, or rather to tell about her life. It seems that there are no more secrets in her fate. Yet another surprise appears. Here and this time. Valentina Petrovna had never mentioned a meeting with Konstantin Simonov before. And it was fleeting though. In the victorious 1945...

And again our meeting took place... in the courtyard. It was on the occasion of the 76th anniversary of the Victory that the courtyard of Valentina Baranova became a festive place. Flags, balloons, crowds of schoolchildren and a military band, bouquets and gifts from regional and city authorities. As the woman herself said, this has never happened in her courtyard before.

She recalled that when they settled in in 1957, there were veterans in every apartment. Now there are only two of them. During this time, more than one generation has grown up, and Valentina Petrovna still "keeps the brand" and wants only one thing – to have peace on earth. "As long as there is peace on earth, there will be life," – she said. Without

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Young Valentina Baranova

exaggeration, she tries to convey this motto to everyone. How not to believe a veteran? In my opinion, these are the most honest people. Valentina Petrovna agrees: – At the front line there are more honest people who can be trusted, you can count on them, you know: they will not surrender in difficult times. I remember many good things, how we lived together then. And we erased those horrors, explosions, death from our lives, because it is very difficult to live with them. That is why they didn't want to mention it.

We are sitting in the courtyard of Valentina Petrovna on the preholiday May day and again leafing through the pages of her life. They appear like stills from a movie. Maybe someday it will happen. They will write a script, invite a director and actors... "Yes, indeed, there will be enough sensations," – the woman smiles at my fantasies.

Isn't fate interesting? To go for war through pull! This alone is surprising. Meanwhile, Valentina Petrovna was the daughter of an "enemy of the people", her father was shot in 1937. Therefore, at first, they did not want to get her to the front. She wrote statements one after another, but got refuses. And then she turned to a friend who worked in the regional committee of the Komsomol. Then, finally, she was sent to the front as a volunteer. – We were patriots of our country. On the third day of the war, the whole class – totally 24 people – came to the military registration and enlistment office, says the veteran. – Then a man came out to us and told the girls that in the war they would do without them, and ordered the guys to wait for the call.

We had to wait a year. It was the 10th grade, everyone – seventeen years old. On June 21, 1941, graduation took place, and the next day the war broke up. The city of Abakan in Khakassia, where the family of Valentina Petrovna lived at that time, became empty in just a few days. And after a couple of months, echelons of the wounded began to arrive. The new school was turned into a hospital.

Valya got a job at a health camp, was a teacher, pioneer, musician, cleaner... And in the evenings, she helped in the hospital, even sang songs there. Since childhood, she was very musical, dreamed of ballet and a career of an artist. But instead, she went to the front as a signalwoman. Meanwhile, artistic talent was needed in the war: during training, she led the singing of the troop. – On the way to the dining room, it was enough to sing one song. There were several of them in the repertoire. When it was difficult at the front, they sang "Get up, the country huge!", if without changes – "Mokhorochka", – says Valentina Petrovna.

She got to the female troop of the 63rd separate communications battalion. The main burden fell on the morse operator (telegraph operators who worked on the Morse code. –auth.). The information transmitted to the unit was very secret, there were fierce battles. As it turned out, the information was of great importance. And the work of the Morse code signaller was assessed as a feat. Just such one important transmission ended for a young girl... with the Order of the Red Star. – It was in Ukraine. I was a shift supervisor at a military telegraph station. Suddenly the door opens and a whole crowd, led by the general, enters. In general, no one had the right to enter the room. Meanwhile, the general demands to give the necessary direction, general requirements to indicate the right direction. The girl who worked with this division lost control of her hand out of fear. And he shouted at the whole room: "Provide me with real telephonist!" And our troop commander shows me – go! I took the key, made a call, my hand obeys, I turn to the general and say: "Speak." And he talked for 20 minutes, both with encryption, and with plain text. And when I told him that his transmission was accepted, he wiped the sweat from his forehead, took my hand and kissed it. Said to the whole room, "Apply for an award!" Apparently, the information was very important, it was just the offensive of 1944, – Valentina Baranova tells about the events of that time. There were many dangerous situations, especially during the offensive. One of them took place at the Sandomierz bridgehead in Poland, where we had to stand on the defensive for almost six months. And when the offensive began, the vehicles in which the communications officers were traveling turned over from the mountain. Then five girls were dragging boxes with heavy equipment, it was necessary to hurry, because the front was advancing. – It was 1945. We were already driving through the territory of Germany when we saw that a whole line of Germans was climbing along the embankment, and we were driving a "semi-truck". We have several machine gunners. They were ready for an unequal battle, and now I see: one German has a white bandage in his hand, the other has a white bandage on his sleeve, that is, they surrender. Then we drove a few meters, and if ours had opened fire, the Germans would have destroyed us," – Valentina Baranova has no doubts.

Six of her friends were killed two months before the end of the war. The telephone line stretched across eastern Germany, and near the house of the forester from the attic, a machine gun fire struck them. Only a military technician survived, but after a while he was killed by a bomb in a dugout. During the bombing, signalmen worked continuously. But when our troops came, it was not so scary. Valentina Petrovna notes how powerful the artillery attack was before entering Berlin. Then she was even called to the observation post, and she saw how the Germans jump out of the trenches during the attack, and the Soviet units advance to the hill. ...While we were talking, the veteran's daughter Natalya brought her mother a scarf. "Tell us how you danced with Simonov," – she asked. Indeed, Valentina Petrovna had such a meeting, albeit a short one. She met the author of the famous poem "Wait for Me and I'll Be Back" at a party in Berlin when the Act of Surrender was signed. She and some other signalwomen were asked to help to lay the table. And when the dancing began, Konstantin Simonov invited her to the waltz tour. Many girls envied her.

She met her husband Nikolai Baranov during study at Vologda Institute. When he was sent to work in Grodno, they moved here. Together they did not manage to get a job at an agricultural institute, and Valentina Petrovna with three children at the age of 32 mastered a new profession – a music worker. It was her dream to go through life with a song. And so it happened. She is sure that with the song one can endure a lot of adversity.

...Valentina Petrovna was in a hurry: a car was to pick her up and take her to the next meeting with young people, and a few hours later they were already waiting for her at the humanitarian college where she studied. In parting, she still ran into the apartment (just ran in) and brought some homemade cheese pastries. "Now she has a very busy schedule,"– said her daughter Natalya. "Every day is busy, there are many meetings."

And I looked and was surprised. Incredibly, at 97 years old, which the woman does not hide, she remains nimble, petite and, I would say, fashionable. With a hairstyle, thin heels, with a cheerful and open character – isn't it an example of femininity and a positive attitude to life? Then, walking around the city, I remembered the wise words of Valentina Petrovna: "I am an optimist in my life. And we must live long, because only optimists live long, although this requires some effort. And in our family, it is not customary to discuss and condemn anyone. Better to wish well for yourself and others."

Coming out of the cortyard, Natalya drew my attention to the neat flowerbed near the house, planted with flowers: "Mom’s work. We processed everything together, she loosens, chooses what flowers to plant, loves tulips, most of them are here, about to bloom..."

Unfortunately, there are fewer and fewer veterans. Therefore, meetings with them become worth their weight in gold. Only by looking at living witnesses of those events, one can understand the true value of today.

Margarita Ushkevich

Valentina Petrovna is an optimist in life

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dMiTry KuZMin:

"ThAnK you grAndfATher for everyThing"

Alexander Kuzmin, the navigator of the link of the bomber aviation regiment on the South and Transcaucasian fronts during the Great Patriotic War, the Knight of the Order of the Red Star and the Patriotic War of the 1st degree, since 1971, the secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Belarus for ideology, is recalled by his grandson Dmitry Kuzmin. A sincere conversation about how the grandson of Alexander Trifanovich personally saw how his family lived and how the example of the grandfather-offi cer infl uenced the fate of Dmitry.

a*As far back as I can remember, how I began to walk and run, and they began to throw me up to one grandfather, then to another... But I constantly lived with grandfather Alexander Trifonovich and grandmother Taisiya Andreevna on Broneviy lane, house 4, apartment 1. By the way, there was a personal entrance to the house: straight from the balcony of the first floor. I really liked it. My grandfather left for work early and came back late. He strove to be in time, so that aft er dinner, turn on the TV and watch the news programs – "Time". On weekends, we went to Naroch, then somewhere near Logoisk – for mushrooms and berries. He was an avid mushroom picker and berry picker. Th ere were also hunts – but these were, one might say, peculiar political events. I always waited for this weekend, because I knew: if no business distracts my grandfather, then we will go somewhere. Th is has always been an adventure for me. As a rule, my grandmother did not have enough time to travel. But sometimes, when she got out, she would sit in the seat next to the driver. We were behind with my grandfather. Th e daughters were not interested in this – and they did not live with us.

*It was great with my grandfather. He talked to me a lot. He told diff erent incidents from the war. And this, probably, ultimately infl uenced the fact that I went further in the footsteps of my grandfathers – in 1983rd to Suvorov, then to the Military School. True, I did not immediately agree to enter Suvorovskoye. It was not easy... Imagine: the kid, the main one in Drozdy, who was called the leader of the Redskins, and then he is sent to the fence, to barracks. I really didn't want that. But the grandfather said, banging his fi st on the table: "You will go!" His authority in the house was indisputable. I didn’t even cry, because I knew it would be wasted tears. If the grandfather said – so it will be. But he did not just command – he competently summed up the evidence base for his decisions. The grandfather was, in fact, the main ideologist in Belarus. His methods extended to my upbringing. For a week he will throw the theses – so that the necessary information is boiled. Th en the intelligence interrogation will conduct: how is the process of its assimilation going. And then the last bombing strike, in the language of military pilots, will infl ict when necessary. *He even had his own weapon. The TT pistol remained from the war. When grandfather was thrown into hospitals, he had his own tablet – a field bag for a pilot. And there, between the cards, the pistol lay. My grandfather said that no one paid any attention to this in wartime. Th ey took the uniform with the tablet, shift ed it – and sent it along with the wounded offi cer Kuzmin to another hospital. So with him a gun came from the war. It was lying safe in the Central Committee. Quietly, as my grandfather thought then. I once held it in my hands in the Central Committee. In the early 80s. I was then in the fi ft h or sixth grade. Sometimes it so happened that I ran into the building on Karl Marx Street, 38 to grandfather's offi ce. Th at time, he just went somewhere for a short while. And the safe, I noticed, remained open. Knowing that there

Alexander Kuzmin was the navigator of the bomber flight during the Great Patriotic War. Starting in 1942 as a "common soldier of the party", he rose to the rank of "general": at the beginning of 1971, he was elected secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Belarus for ideology. It took almost 30 years of hard work to take the place of navigator in a high party structure. He remained secretary of the Central Committee for 15 years. Only in 1986, aft er fundamental clashes with the then republican party leadership of the highest rank on the "issues" of the Chernobyl tragedy, Kuzmin resigned... He lived a bright life, this extraordinary person, with whom we communicated for several evenings in a row on the eve of 2001, and after his death on the 60th anniversary of the Liberation and Victory two magazine published an interview with him during his lifetime ("Belarus", No. 2, 3- 2004).

Alexander Kuzmin on holidays

is something interesting there, I looked in. For what, of course, I was punished later. Th ere was such a story... And when my grandfather and Slyunkov (Nikolai Slyunkov – Belarusian Soviet party leader – ed.) began to work, he said: "Goodbye, guys, we are not on our way." And he left the Central Committee. He thought that on the last working day he would come and collect his things there. But when he arrived, the safes were all opened. And the pistol was gone. Alexander Trifonovich could not ask anyone a question about military weapons. Who will you ask if you are already a pensioner. *Did I like that I went to the military unit? I liked it in 2007, when I fi nally left for demobilization. Before the Suvorov School, I planned to become a sculptor, because I sculpted very well. It was difficult with toys back then – you remember. But the grandchildren of the Surganovs, Sashka and Vovka, had good toys – their relatives had some kind of connection with abroad. Cars, multicolored rubber Indians... But I don't have that. I exchanged something, my grandfather brought something – but these were separate bright moments, and there was no system for replenishing the arsenal of children's toys. By the way, I recently made a tombstone portrait on the grave of Sashka's father. He was also a career officer – he was a cadet. So, in the absence of a suffi cient number of my troops, I began to sculpt Indians, soldiers, partisans. In our team in Drozdy – there were government dachas – there was also Andrei Pritytsky, the grandson of the famous public fi gure Sergei Pritytsky. He, like the other guys, was older than me. Once we conceived military battles, to conduct battles – but we had few toys that we shot from homemade air balloons – made from bicycle pumps. At some moments of the battle, even gasoline was poured on the battlefield, the bridges were burned – the fantasy worked, it was interesting. Even the forest there once began to burn. Then they punished us. Yes, I, of course, was not a gift and threw worries to the guards at the dachas, but without malicious intent. The militiamen were diff erent – I was friends with most of them. I ran to the local buff et for them for a smoke or for food. Donks were put together in the pond at night. Lenya Drobenya taught me how to throw knives, they made boats out of bark with others, but there were those who hated all the dacha gigiters, others could podddy smuggle in – they knew that I would not complain to my grandfather. And I recognized Drobenya somehow and dealt with such a colleague.

the shoulder straps of lieutenant Alexander Kuzmin, the navigator's ruler and other relics are kept by Dmitry in memory of his grandfather

Grandfather and grandson. Happy moments.

toys that we shot from homemade air balloons – made from bicycle pumps. At some moments of the battle, even gasoline was poured on the battlefield, the bridges were burned – the fantasy worked, it was interesting. Even the forest there once began to burn. Then they punished us. Yes, I, of course, was not a gift and threw worries to the guards at the dachas, but without malicious intent. The militiamen were diff erent – I was friends would not complain to my grandfather. And I recognized Drobenya somehow and dealt with such a colleague.

We kept in touch with him in the 90s. He, like me served in one of the special forces of the Republic of Belarus. *Drozdy is very close to Minsk, almost in the city. Along Pobediteley Avenue (then Masherova) when you go – there is an old cemetery, a new building of the Academy of Physical Education, a new temple on the

right – and there is a turn there. 700 meters – and you run into the fence. I regularly visited the future residence of the President with my grandfather. Once, with Vovka Surganov, they managed to pick up a sturgeon from the Masherovsky pond.

How we ran then! But there were some consequences. *In summer dacha was everything for me. I even exchanged my fate, which could be associated with cinema, for a dacha, for friendship, for soldiers. Yes Yes. I was selected and approved for the role of Pinocchio. The shooting was supposed to start in the summer. I remember very well how my mother took me to the Belarusfilm film studio, handed me over to someone, and when we passed through the property department, I "got lost". I ran away from there, deciding that the summer should be spent in the country, and not on the site. *I have never had a feeling of a certain chosenness, belonging to a special caste of people. Especially in childhood. Children live in their own world, in their family – and for them this is the norm. They have nothing to compare their lives with. That is why I have always believed: every person should have a dacha. Although I will not say that there were some delights in our life. Yes, there were order tables, and we went there. And they poured sour cream for us there. So they poured it in stores in the same way. I remember more those orders due to the fact that my grandfather's

mother lived in Bobruisk, with his stepfather. And once a month on weekends – that was the rule – we went there. How they lived there – I saw it. But I began to compare and analyze later, when I grew up. *I well remember my Bobruisk greatgrandmother Lida. She lived for 99 years. The Kuzmins have good genes. For example, my mother, Valentina Aleksandrovna Kuzmina, is in good health compared to the rest. She's from 1944. Now she is cheerful. I had my own aunt, my mother's younger sister, and my cousin. But they are no longer with us. *That my grandfather was a hero, I knew from early childhood: I saw his orders and medals. With age, I began to understand what each of them is worth. And my grandfather, as I said, told me about the war. I remember, for example, his stories about combat flights in dense fog in the Kazbek region. He had a medal for the Caucasus ("For the Defense of the Caucasus"). The pilots intuitively climbed higher so as not to catch the tops of the mountains. My grandfather told me how he fell there several times – the planes were shot down. It was clear to me that my grandfather had a difficult life path. As an officer, the flight commander was a serious participant in the war. In childhood, of course, everything was perceived differently: as an adventure. You start to realize later. Grandfather in the 38th or 39th himself went to the Krasnodar flight school. By the beginning of the war, he was just prepared. By the way, sometimes I also fly in my sleep. At the helm. *My grandfather always took me to parades. All the parades that took place then on October Square were under my control (smiles). I did not go up to the podium with my grandfather, they determined a place for me to stand. They said: here you are standing and looking. I knew a step to the right or a step to the left would have consequences. And I stood. It happened that dad, when he was still living with us, carried me to the parade on his shoulders. But mostly I went with their grandfather. These were also the days when I closely communicated with him. Fishing, and mushrooms, trips in the car for an hour or two, there and back, in a boat on a fishing trip – there was a conversation. Basically, he told me something. And I was probably the most grateful listener to his stories, opinions about anything. In addition, the grandfather himself read a lot of all kinds of literature, including religious. After all, according to their duty, leaders of this rank in Soviet times were "attached" to churches. And my grandfather was responsible for one church, it seems, in the village of Krasnoe near Radoshkovichi. When we went to Naroch, he stopped by regularly. Communicated with the priest. *Grandfather had a company car. But on weekends, if he was going somewhere, he told the drivers in advance to decide who could go, and they themselves decided who would go. Sometimes we went with his brother Volodya, he was a former race car driver. And he was always on wheels. And even now he goes to the dacha in Berezinsky. He is 89 years old. One driver by the name of Rybakov, as a result of our trips, looked after and also bought himself a house in the Berezinsky reserve. He was also a good fisherman. They cooperated. "Will you go? – I'll go. And he took me and my grandfather. And the second driver was. We also had a driver, our uncle Misha Melnikov,

Dmitry with his mother Valentina and the result of child labor –soldiers Dmitry found the cat Bunya as a halfdead kitten on his birthday, July 6, on the Naroch under the ferns

some kind of distant relative of ours. Also a lover of walking around mushrooms. These drivers have always had the right to choose whether to drive or not. They themselves sometimes agreed among themselves who was going. *Alexander Trifonovich also knew how to drive. At some point in his life, he even had his own "Victory". But when a company car happened, he was not driving for a long time. He said: you need driving practice all the time. And did not climb behind the wheel. He could drive through the forest – yes, it happened: if he knew the way himself. Then he would change into the driver's seat and drive – so as not to wave his hands. In 1986, having quarreled with Slyunkov because he voluntarily gave the command to announce the disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the media, because of the dissimilarity of approaches to the Chernobyl problems, grandfather put his Central Committee membership card on the table and quit. That is, he left the Central Committee. But he remained a member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet until 1989. And so he was evicted from the first dacha Drozdy, they gave him a house in the second – and there was a dacha. When it became clear that they would have to say goodbye to her, they began to think about their home. We were friends with Igor Luchenok (Belarusian composer, People's Artist of the USSR – ed.). He found these sites in Zhdanovichi. I resigned just then in 1989: the military forces were being cut. Where they were assigned at the end of 88, I could not get there. Therefore, I decided to leave. I studied at the Warsaw Pact Military Political School in Minsk. It was a military academy for the Ground Forces. By the way, a lot of foreigners studied there: Cubans, Germans, Afghans from the countries of Cape Verde, the Ivory Coast (now Cote d'Ivoire), Guinea-Bissau... We had serious training. All the officersteachers – with combat experience: some from Afgan, who could not tell from where... They taught well... *The decision to dismiss was not an easy one, my grandfather and I thought it over carefully. After all, there were options to leave to serve in the Union, but it was possible not to return. You never know where they will send. Moreover, the collapse of the Union was beginning. My grandfather had a presentiment of this situation: he said that the wrong people are already in power... In general, this period of history is very interesting. And there was a moment when the Communist Party went underground altogether: after August 19 in 1991. The question arose about the withdrawal of party money abroad. They also wanted to sign my grandfather on this topic. He said: "No, I have nothing to do with the party's money. A penny will be lost – they will ask me. I’m not an accountant." My grandfather was very correct in these matters. He understood that it was impossible to take someone else's. He himself grew out of a village shepherdess and saw how people live. *Grandfather was a real officer who understood what an officer's honor and dignity are. Not that he was sticking it out somewhere, but he acted accordingly. And, as they say now, he did not like freebies. I remember that somehow my grandfather, me, my grandmother and my mother and my sister (that is, my aunt) found themselves in an interesting situation. Some local chief called my grandfather to some district with us, they say, come for mushrooms! On the weekend we went. My grandfather, I remember, was not wearing a tie. In boots – after all, they called for the mushrooms. That is, clearly not a business meeting was planned. Have arrived. And there is already such a reception! His boss: "Alexander Trifonovich! If you want – we will organize a hunt for you, if you want – fishing, whatever you want! " I'm pushing my grandfather: go hunting, grandfather, let's go hunting! .. And we have just arrived. The grandfather looked at it all: a building, a bunch of tables laid, invited people (the socalled narrow circle of limited persons). I was in class, maybe seventh. I already smoked. I remember: I went to the hayloft and smoked. I go out with a bull – the local guys are looking at me: are you smoking there? I nodded so proudly. They: well, you give! It's hay! It dawned on me that I was taking a great risk – but I had to hide somewhere. I smoked, imitating my grandfather: he smoked like a steam locomotive. While you are driving with him in the car, you are already suffocating. So the grandfather looked at the situation then – and: "That's it! Get in the car and go! In the car!". He drove everyone into the car, said something to the boss – he was at a loss. Grandfather: sorry, we have to go. And we left. That is, the grandfather understood: the banquet was started for a reason. Someone wanted something from him, so he organized a feast. Like that. But it also happened in a different way. *I well remember his friendship with Masherov (Pyotr Masherov is a Soviet party and statesman. First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Belarus –ed.). It was he and his grandfather who raised, say, the sanatorium "Sosny" on Lake Naroch – he and Pyotr Mironovich thought over this project together. I still have pictures:

Alexander Kuzmin (right) with his wife taisiya. Next to a friend with his wife, a member of the crew. Front line photo.

During the visit of Fidel Castro to Minsk on July 5, 1972. Center: First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Belarus Pyotr Masherov. Alexander Kuzmin – top left.

two families there in an empty meadow. We came there on weekends: mushrooms, berries, fishing. Masherov with his daughters, and then with his granddaughters, and grandfather with his family. We all spent time there together. At first they built just wooden houses there. And my dad was like the chief engineer when they built "Sosny". Nobody wanted to go to the object of the Central Committee, so the son-in-law was appointed. This is how this entire infrastructure appeared there. Mom and father divorced at 1979-80. He lives in Canada. He has his own family there. *I have always treated my grandfather like an officer. Because there are no former officers. For some reason they got along with Masherov. And why? just because he was sincerely caring for Belarus – and my grandfather sincerely. That's why they were together. I remember the horror when, as a teenager, I heard the dismissively defiant: "What are you: a communist? Communist?" Boys, teenagers said that. And being a communist in their eyes was already bad. I did not know this then – but now I understand how the foundations of our society gradually collapsed before our eyes. I hit the offenders in the face for such words. And I thought it was right. Because I knew the communist Alexander Kuzmin, Masherov, Pritytsky. But people saw from the outside that there were both opportunists and careerists in the party, who calculatedly used the party resource for their own purposes: to take up normal posts. And they poured mud on those who did not give them a move, did not allow them to turn around in full force... Grandfather was also called to Moscow. When he spoke at congresses – without papers – he was noticed. But my grandfather refused. He did not betray Belarus. *It is not forgotten how the grandfather communicated with people. I have never noticed that he put himself above the interlocutor. It doesn't matter who was in front of him. If he entered into a conversation with someone – be it at work or not at work – he did not have, as they say now, show off. And then it all worked in a certain way in favor of the grandfather. In the 90s, almost all party leaders were out of work, and no one spoke to them, in fact, from their subordinates. And with my grandfather, in spite of everything, many people maintained friendly relations. I mean from his former subordinates. For example, in the Berezinsky reserve, Vladimir Ivanovich Meshchanov was the head of the hunting farm. And there they organized political hunts all the time. In addition, my grandfather went there for fishing and mushrooming. So they remained on good terms after all the events. So I still communicate with Vladimir Ivanovich. Alexander Kuzmin always emphasized: I am as simple a guy as you are. I saw how in church he communicated with parishioners, and with the priest, and the priest with him. And with others...

*Sometimes I heard: you were in the shadow of your grandfather, you don't know life. But due to the fact that he was too correct, he did not take care of me in terms of my flights and troubles. He had a clear position: you go through life yourself. And you yourself live the consequences of what you have done. I walked on my own – and you yourself. To consult – yes, but so that he would ask someone for me, go somewhere, call someone – this was not the case. *In general, over the years of service I have had excellent, worthy commanders, I remember and respect everyone. We still maintain good, comradely relations. We help each other. True, there was one colonel in the school who made me hold the line. He had personal reasons for this. He spoiled my blood. But this only made me stronger. *I have never felt myself in the cage of "golden" youth. But my mother and sister, or the children of Slyunkov, Kiselev, Surganov, Pritytsky, Masherov, may have been caught. Natalya Petrovna Masherova and I are well acquainted, I grew up with her daughters. I could become her son-in-law. Natalya Petrovna has two daughters – Lena and Katya, granddaughters of Pyotr Mironovich, and we were very close friends. Especially with Katya. They even came to our guardhouse at the Military School – and we had to hide them there when the company commander came to check the service. As a result, Lenka married Kuzmin, my namesake. As far as I know, Surganov's grandchildren have been away from Belarus for a long time. Sanya lives in Poland, Volodya lives in France. And Masherov's granddaughters live in the USA. Natalya Petrovna goes to see them. It turned out differently for me. Well, as I said, in 1989 I resigned from the USSR Armed Forces. My grandfather and I built a dacha in Zhdanovichi. Bricks, logs were pulled together. And the times were not easy, building materials were in short supply. But the Motherland did not forget me, and already in the 90s I continued my service in Minsk, but in a different department. *Sculpture is in my life since the fifth grade. My grandfather introduced me to Ivan Akhremchik, Ivan Misko – and I tried to do something in his workshop. They decided to try to send me to the Akhremchik art

school. But this school could not stand my adolescence. I did not study at all, after the 8th grade I went from there. In the visual arts, everything was fine for me, but in general education, only in biology there was a single triple – the teacher loved me – the other two. I think that the headmaster was expecting grandfather to come and care for his grandson. *Kuzmins never bathed in luxury. They lived in moderation. When I visited the Masherovs, I saw that there were house helpers. They worked in the kitchen. Nonfamily members wore white coats. But it was necessary, the position obliged. After all, Masherov worked both at home and in the country. Someone constantly came to him. He had a billiards table in the basement there, and even his own cinema. Some films were played there at business meetings. And naturally, something was served at the same time: tea, coffee, sandwiches... They, Masherovs, everyone worked, went to work. *My grandmother's parents still lived with us. She transported them from Salsk, which is in the Rostov region. At one time there was no janitor in our yard, so grandfather Andrey was sweeping, and I took part. With him we cleaned the snow in the winter. And my greatgrandmother Dunya prepared food for the whole family. Ukrainian cabbage soup, bulbayushka and all other dishes in the Kuzmin family are from her. My grandmother and great-grandmother provided for life. I was spinning there too – to dig up potatoes, to transfer something somewhere. We had our own vegetable gardens at our dachas. And there were normal vegetable gardens in Drozdy. 50 to 50 meters. Raspberries, strawberries grew. There, I remember, someone helped with the garden, with weeding. The girl was a little older than me and my mother. I also met with them later. And in our city apartment and at the dacha we never had any strangers. *Is our life the result of actions or chance? Alexander Trifonovich thought so: we ourselves are the blacksmiths of our own happiness. What you sow is what you reap. And the chain of events in your life is woven – by you, and not by someone else. If you don't like something, you can only blame yourself. This is one of the postulates that I learned from my communication with my grandfather. He always said that sooner or later he would have to answer for his actions. And if you screwed up, then "recoil" will always catch up with you. My grandfather, I repeat, always read a lot of religious literature. And Moody's book, Life After Death, was with him. With someone he agreed, with someone he did not. This is in his notes – I still have some of them. After his death, Taya grandmother handed over one notebook with orders. He writes there, argues with Moody. He remembers: he went to Berezinsky – he felt bad in the boat. Lost consciousness. And he fixes that at that time there was nothing. Emptiness. Darkness. He analyzed, wrote down his feelings. And he decided: apparently there is nothing behind the curtain. He was convinced by his own experience. He told me too: there was no corridor, no angels. There was nothing. And at that moment I was simply not there. But there was also another experience. When he was found 200 meters from the fall of the plane, walled up in the frame of the navigator's cockpit. There my grandfather had visions – a huge tiger and some kind of old man. And colors that are not in this world... So he himself was not sure if there was something behind the veil. Or maybe not. He also had a Chernobyl notebook – he also wrote something down in it. Even after the tragedy at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, he and Ales Adamovich (Alexander Mikhailovich Adamovich – Belarusian Soviet writer, screenwriter – ed.) Prepared materials, sent them to Moscow twice... The press then wrote that after the explosion of the atomic reactor in Chernobyl, Adamovich was one of the first in Belarus who began to actively draw public attention to what had happened. Now, with the passage of time, it is clear that there would not be people like him in our country, Alexander Kuzmin, Nikolai Borisevich (Nikolai Aleksandrovich Borisovich – Soviet and Belarusian physicist, statesman and public figure, academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences –ed.). Vasily Nesterenko ( Vasily Borisovich Nesterenko – Soviet and Belarusian scientist, corresponding member of the Academy of Sciences of the BSSR – ed.) and others who were not afraid to speak openly about the tragedy at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, about the real pollution and the consequences of the disaster. *I dream that someone would write about my grandfather. Right now is the time when young people who have grown up at the turn of the century need to take an example from such personalities as Alexander Kuzmin. For education – I am deeply convinced – wellstructured, competent ideological work is also needed. My grandfather wrote as long as he could. Back in 2003, he wrote concepts for the further development of Belarus to those who came to him, came in official cars from the House of Government. I know: there were many walkers, they asked him to write on different topics. I think my grandfather's work was not in vain. He actually took part in the political life of our society. And in the way Belarus has developed, I see the development of his thoughts and ideas. Figuratively speaking, the military navigator Alexander

Alexander Kuzmin with his wife taisiya at one of the government concerts

Trifonovich in a difficult period of his life laid a route to the future... *And where is Alexander Trifonovich's "Chernobyl Notebook" now, it is difficult to say. There are certain difficulties in communication between his descendants –

for various reasons. Piles of manuscripts, Kuzmin's valuable archive is now inaccessible to me. There was a basement in the house, where the shelves were filled with them. My grandfather asked me: take this here, tie this together... He only signed the topics. To make it easier to organize later. I carried those glasses to the basement. Unfortunately, my relatives sold that apartment. Hopefully, if everything remains, someone will understand and transfer all this to the state archives. Something Natasha, one of Kuzmin's daughters, was passing it on somewhere. So maybe the Chernobyl notebook is there too... *I also ran with the idea of a movie about Kuzmin to the director Efremov (Alexander Efremov, artistic director of the Film Actor Theatre-Studio). He said: a very interesting topic. There is no Belarusian film about pilots. And in the case of Alexander Trifonovich, you can go from navigator-pilot to navigator of the party, the main ideologist of Belarus. Public processes can be reflected. How he, let's say gave "Veras" (pop ensemble) way to life, how he supported "Pesnyary", defended Vasil Bykov (Belarusian writer) from attacks. With Mikhail Savitsky (People's Artist of the USSR) they were on friendly terms – and thanks to Kuzmin the artist got the opportunity to teach his courses (now in that building on 3 Nekrasov Street in Minsk – the National Center for Contemporary Arts – ed.). I am a little aware of how such projects were discussed – including at the dachas. The publication of Books of Memory in all regions of Belarus is also, one might say, a large-scale project of Alexander Kuzmin.

Also his idea was to publish the newspaper "Arguments and Facts". He substantiated it as follows: a person did not have time to attend the Vremya program, but one must be aware of the events. And this is flipping 7-8 newspapers. So let there be one newspaper with factual data, let it be done by professionals – and present both current events and other interesting information in a compact manner. At the same time, there was no Internet. *Home grandfather brought with him a bunch of papers and could sit over them almost until the morning. With such a mood and came. It happened that he was gloomy and tired. But I did not see him irritated: he was always in control. I don’t remember that on someone, as they say, he dumped his negativity. It used to be that grandfather and grandmother dive in – but not evil and not for long. There were no conflicts. *Everyone in the family listened to grandfather, heard. And there was only one person who could treat his words without due reverence. This is your humble servant. The first time I disobeyed when I was sent to Suvorovskoye. I just opened the window and I was gone for a couple of days. Fortunately, it was the first floor in the country. And then – after all, I heard my grandfather. Persuaded, he persuaded his grandson. I finished Suvorovskoye – I thought to go further on sculpture. There was a military art academy in St. Petersburg. But they were careful not to let me go there. Something stopped them. Apparently, they were afraid that I would run wild. I told them: so I'll be there behind the fences – just like here. What's the difference? After all, to do art after all... I did not convince. They sent me, as you already know, to the Military acadamy inMinsk. *Inside myself, in my life I feel the struggle between "I don’t want" and "I must". First, the grandfather said "must", then the officers. But I have always found an outlet in art and music. My mom is a musician. Together with her sister, they always taught piano at the Pedagogical University. I still play. I have a Yamaha 550 – I have a synthesizer – I relax so much. I sculpt and I play. I improvise in a jazz style. I can compose a little myself. *I have already told about children's toys. And the skills acquired at the art school, Akhremchik's workshop, have not gone anywhere. I can say, a self-taught sculptor, because I do not have a diploma. I work for my own pleasure. The gravestone monument to Alexander Trifonovich Kuzmin at the Minsk Eastern cemetery was made according to my project. There is my bronze – I made a bas-relief of my grandfather. Cast in a private company. In 1989, I also cast my first work: it was a fireplace grate. When I quit, I thought: what to do next. I talked with respected people from the Union of Architects... I was friends with Zhora Skripnichenko, I made his portrait. Georgy Skripnichenko is the first and most consistent representative of Belarusian surrealism. This is an absolutely talented artist devoted to art, whose works are now included in the golden fund of Belarusian culture. But these are all, as they say, optional cases. Here Surganov Sashka asked – Dima, do it. I did. I would love to work and not at the level of a hobby. My friends, as well as former teachers, like my work. Another thing is that practice is not enough. A sculptor, like a musician, needs to be busy every day. And I do it periodically. We have different speeds in these works. I can get stuck in some detail. Professionals have more experience and best practices, craftsmanship. *Working with the material, I feel that it would be better if I worked with it for life. I shouldn't have gotten twos. To stay in the

Dmitry Kuzmin with his wife Natalia on vacation in Prague

artist – and everything would have turned out differently. Perhaps, after the artist, I would have entered the sculpture department at the theatrical art institute (the Belarusian Theatre and Art Institute, now the Belarusian State Academy of Arts –ed.). I would have finished it – I would have had a diploma. And this thing is sometimes needed. Because different competitions are held, and to participate in them there must be an art higher education... *In 1992, I married the daughter of a retired colonel, as it later surfaced – a friend of the head of my school. He is a former Afghan, holder of the Order "For Service to the Motherland in the Armed Forces of the USSR." My wife Natasha is the daughter of an officer. And she was raised as the daughter of an officer. We have two children: son Nikita born in 1993 and a daughter Olga born in 1998. My daughter also knows how to sculpt, draw, and is currently finishing roses for Surganov's grave. She went for this part. And Sasha, the grandson of Fyodor Surganov, as I said, is in Poland. Sasha's mother, the daughter of Fyodor Surganov, is already at an age. And Sanya decided that there should be flowers on the grave. *Since the grandfather had two daughters, we understood: the grandfather's surname must be kept. This is what my mother wanted – she is still Kuzmina according to her passport. She divorced when I was still in the 4th grade. Changing the surname is the theme of the year 1994: when my children began to be born. I got married when I was my father's last name. Then I changed it to Kuzmin. My grandfather was pleased with my decision. So I became Dmitry Alexandrovich Kuzmin. *In 2003, my grandfather passed away. The memory of him in Minsk has not been immortalized. In 1939, Alexander Kuzmin put on cadets' shoulder straps, honestly served the Motherland – in fact, until the last days. Surganov has a street, Pritytsky. It is clear that Masherov's too. Kuzmin, his right hand, does not even have a lane yet. If we talk about patriotism and education by examples, then, in my opinion, Belarusians should remember this person. His fate "takes" us out of the heroic military past to the new Belarus. Alexander Trifonovich did a lot for its development and prosperity. The way he lived his life, how he walked his earthly path, can be a good example for others, especially for young people. This is one of the most worthy examples of not only serving the party, but serving the Motherland. There was such a moment in his biography. After the last serious injury, he was demobilized. And submitted to the Order of the Red Star... And then sent to party work. After all, this was also a service. And the young family began to live in some kind of extension to the house in the Trinity Suburb. They barely had enough money for bread. My grandmother told me. The film "Officers", where the actor Yumatov brings borsch to his wife – in about the same kennel and in the same conditions, the Kuzmins began to live in Minsk. *It is important not to forget people who sincerely served their native country. Episodes from the life of Alexander Kuzmin are also described in works of fiction. In the story "Immobility" by Ales Adamovich, it is said that an officer who was lying motionless on a stretcher (only one eye was shining), who was all broken, in a cast, got from one hospital and went with transfers by rail to another hospital, to his friend pilot... The story "The Third Pilot" by Anatoly Sulyanov is also based on the facts of grandfather's biography. The writer removed some moments in the final version – because they were unpleasant to my grandmother. This is a story about how a nurse nursed a wounded pilot for two weeks in an abandoned sakla, in the Caucasus. Grandfather then remembered her all his life. She saved him from certain death – she bandaged his wounds, warmed him up, fed him, and repulsed the locals. And they finally waited for the car, which took the wounded man to the hospital. We have examples of a worthy, heroic life – and we must not forget about them. In order not to lose just the memory of people devoted to the Motherland – not to lose our Motherland itself. Alas, now many TV series are being filmed, 15-20 episodes each – about nothing. But on the fate, such as my grandfather, it would be necessary to direct creative attention. Hope someone can do this. And I am grateful to you for the fact that you remember about Alexander Kuzmin, about one of those who died.

Interviewed by Valentina and Ivan

Zhdanovich

Photos from private archive of Dmitry Kuzmin

"My soldiers". Casting, bronze, malachite stand.

Sculptural portrait of Georgy Skripnichenko, Belarusian surrealist painter. the author is Dmitry Kuzmin, his friend.

the tombstone of Alexander Kuzmin was designed by Dmitry. Approved by taisiya Kuzmina, as well as the sculptural portrait in bronze made by her grandson.