Sweden's most famous writer may or may not have been a Soviet spy

[Pat]

Writer Guillou admits KGB connection
Published: 24 Oct 09 10:09 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/22848/20091024/

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Prominent Swedish author and journalist Jan Guillou had liaisons spanning five years with the Soviet intelligence service in the 1960s. Guillou maintains he was trying to reveal how the KGB was operating in Sweden.


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The revelations have been disclosed by the newspaper Expressen after it obtained documents from Swedish intelligence agency Säpo on Guillou's relations with the KGB.

The documents centre around Russian agent Jevgenij Ivanovitj Gergel, the KGB's man in Stockholm at the end of the 1960s.

A witness statement from one of Guillou's journalist colleagues at the time raised the alarm over relations between the two. It also refers to an assignment to steal an internal telephone directory from the American Embassy in Stockholm.

Guillou confirmed that he first met Gergel at a reception held at the Soviet Embassy in Stockholm in 1967.

"We never did anything other than talk politics," he told the newspaper.

Guillou adds that his connection never led to any journalistic revelations and he denies spying for the Soviets.

He concedes, however, that he undertook paid assignments but claims the purpose was of a professional nature, to investigate how the KGB was working in Sweden at the time.

"It was just a few non-events and it is not a crime to meet foreign intelligence services," he added.

Guillou had contact with the KGB until 1972 when he began publishing articles that revealed the existence of Informationsbyrån, a secret Swedish military intelligence agency that spied on Swedish citizens for political purposes. He was later jailed for espionage.

Säpo's investigation of Guillou's KGB relations never led to any indictments writes Expressen.

I'm actually leaning towards believing him when he say he was largely motivated by professional and journalistic curiosity - most of his early writing is spy thrillers, and he has never been pro-Soviet in his writing. Guillou is a socialist but in his spy novels the main character regards the Soviet union an enemy of socialism and an enemy of Sweden. I'll suspend judgement for now; this story just broke, I'm sure he'll be forced to do a lot of explaining, especially as regards those paid assignments for the KGB

[Syt]

I thought this would be about Astrid Lindgren or Henning Mankell.

[Razgovory]

He's accused of stealing a phone book for the KGB?  No wonder they lost the cold war.

[Pat]

I thought this would be about Astrid Lindgren or Henning Mankell.

I don't think Guillou is very well known to the rest of the world, since his books are mostly geared towards the domestic market (though I think his crusader books about a swede raised in a monastery by warrior monks who goes to join the knights templars to fight in the holy land are read in some other Scandinavian countries as well) but in Swedish public discourse he's pretty much the alpha male of writing.

[Josquius]

I always find it so odd (but cool) that small countries of a few million people can have their own little self contained literature, music et al scenes.

[Zanza]

I thought this would be about Astrid Lindgren or Henning Mankell.

Or Stieg Larsson.

[Zanza]

Reading the Wiki entry on Guillou, I have to say that he would be a great addition to Languish.

[Razgovory]

I'd rather have that Italian Commie back.  I liked him.

[The Brain]

Considering that the Social Democrats embraced the SU and the DDR as late as 1989 a deep-red Communist journalist working for the KGB is nothing big.

Guillou (along with fellow journalist Peter Bratt) will always have some cred for exposing the Social Democratic government's illegal thought police (the IB) in 73. Unlike Redford and Hoffman they were sentenced to jail.

[Pat]

Guillou (along with fellow journalist Peter Bratt) will always have some cred for exposing the Social Democratic government's illegal thought police (the IB) in 73.

I'm now thinking maybe it was the Soviets who told him about that.

[The Brain]

Guillou (along with fellow journalist Peter Bratt) will always have some cred for exposing the Social Democratic government's illegal thought police (the IB) in 73.

I'm now thinking maybe it was the Soviets who told him about that.

Good for him.

[Slargos]

This is not news.

[Viking]

They should do him for not paying taxes off that income.

[BuddhaRhubarb]

Sweden has famous writers? ... The more you know...

[Viking]

and to think this guy took to the streets to protest the IB's attempts to find out which swedish lefties had been influenced by the KGB... disgraceful..