Trust Operation (операция "Трест") was an operation presented as a spectacular counterintelligence success of OGPU in 1921-1926.

"Trust" was an operation to set up a fake anti-Bolshevik underground organization, "Monarchist Union of Central Russia", MUCR (Монархическое объединение Центральной России, МОЦР). The "head" of the MUCR was Alexander Yakushev (Александр Александрович Якушев), a former bureaucrat of Ministry of Communications of Imperial Russia, who after the Russian Revolution joined the Narkomat of External Trade (Наркомат внешней торговли), when the Soviets had to allow the former specialists (called "specs", "спецы") to take positions of their expertise. This position allowed him to travel abroad and contact Russian emigrants.

MUCR kept the monarchist general Alexander Kutepov (Александр Кутепов), head of a major emigrant force, Russian All-Military Union ( Русский общевоинский союз), from active actions, who was convinced to wait for the development of the internal anti-Bolshevik forces.

Among the successes of "Trust" was the luring of Boris Savinkov and Sidney Reilly into the Soviet Union to be arrested.

Some modern researchers say that there are reasons to believe that both persons had doubts in MUCR, and they went illegally into the Soviet Union for their own reasons, using MUCR as a pretext.

Still another episode of the operation was an "illegal" trip (in fact, monitored by OGPU) of a notable emigree Vasily Shulgin into the Soviet Union. After his return he published a book "Three Capitals" with his impressions. In the book he wrote, in part, that contrary his expectations, Russia was reviving, and bolsheviks would probably be removed from power.

In 1970s a Soviet adventure TV sequel, Operation "Trust" (Операция "Трест") was created.

References

• Richard B. Spence Trust no One: The Secret World of Sidney Reilly, Feral House publ., 2003, ISBN 0922915792