Top KGB defector and Cold War spy found dead at home aged 86
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KGB defector and Cold War spy Oleg Gordievsky dies age 86
- Former KGB defector Oleg Gordievsky has died at age 86.
- Gordievsky, codenamed Hetman, was a key Cold War spy, providing Britain with crucial intelligence on Soviet leadership and KGB operations.
- His warnings about Soviet fears of a NATO nuclear attack helped de-escalate tensions between the superpowers.
- In 1985, he was suspected of being a British spy and recalled to Moscow, but escaped to Finland with the help of MI6.
- He was sentenced to death in absentia for treason by Russia, but honored by Queen Elizabeth II in 2007.