...Following the
assassination at the Kremlin, there was an even greater conspiracy of massive
cover-up. The Soviet leaders did not wish to be seen like some Mafia hit men in
the eyes of the world and of their own public. With the full complicity of the
military, they preferred to manufacture and release the rather cumbersome story
of Beria’s arrest, secret trial, and execution. This course of justice
lasted for months, with huge piles of paperwork issued, and crimes imaginable
and unimaginable assiduously listed. Among the Party leaders, Khrushchev took
personal credit for the removal of Beria, with Mikoyan only too happy to be “cheated
out” of this most dubious honor. But these two were by no means the only ones
who infinitely enjoyed the prolonged circus of vengeance against their dead
foe.
This circus, however, had
a very legitimate reason. It would not have been enough to declare Beria’s
death a tragic accident, a suicide, or some enemy act of terrorism. As I said
before, Beria had commanded a vast sinister organization, which needed to be
completely dismantled and destroyed. Without publicly declaring Beria a
dangerous criminal, an enemy of the Soviet Union, and an imperialist spy to
boot (that last charge was particularly effective, and, historically speaking,
not altogether false!), the anxiously anticipated drastic purge of the police
and security apparatus would not have been possible.
Despite a very elaborate
effort at creating some virtual reality, made by Khrushchev and other members
of the Presidium, even the basic facts of the authorized version do not
quite add up. For instance, describing one pivotal detail in his version of
Beria’s “arrest,” Khrushchev is alleging that “Comrade
Bulganin was instructed [by the conspirators] to see that the marshals and
generals [opposed to Beria and participating in the plot] were allowed to bring
their guns with them [into the Kremlin].” This explanation is just plain
ludicrous. Even though Bulganin was Soviet Defense Minister at the time, he,
just like everybody else, had no authority over the police and the Kremlin
guard, who were all without exception Beria’s exclusive domain. Would these
hardcore professionals ever allow Khrushchev’s “marshals and generals” to
smuggle weapons into the Kremlin against the official stated policy? I don’t
think so!
Yes, Beria was one of
those men in history who could never be impeached. His arrest would have
required the use of such force which none of the conspirators could even dream
of. The only way to get rid of Beria was a very quick and very lethal inside
job.
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