To his Australian acquaintances, Soviet Embassy First Secretary Ivan Feodorovich Skripov seemed a likable sort, as Soviet diplomats go. He was a good talker, an enthusiastic partygoer and a back-slapping practical joker who often laced his guests' beer with vodka, guffawing when they caught on. But amiable Ivan was more than a spoofer. He was also a spy.
His escapades began early in 1961, when he met a trim young woman identified only as "Miss X" at the zoo in Sydney's Taronga Park and recruited her as a Soviet agent. She seemed willing,...
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