Chasing Rogue Nukes after the Fall of the Soviet Union (442)

Cold War Conversations - "vivid & compelling" The NY Times

Ian Sanders

Society & Culture, Documentary, History

4.8 • 863 Ratings

🗓️ 7 February 2026

⏱️ 51 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Susan Miller continues the story of her CIA career, recalling a harrowing experience of the 1991 US embassy fire in Moscow, and the unexpected humanity displayed by a KGB officer who helped save lives during the crisis. Episode one is here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode441/ In Poland, a KGB walk-in claims to have microfiche containing the names of every spy the KGB was running overseas. And as CIA Chief in Vilnius, Susan is confronted by another KGB walk-in with a box of weapons-grade uranium Listen to part one here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode441/ Episode extras ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode442/ Help me preserve Cold War history via a simple monthly donation, You’ll become part of our community, get ad-free episodes, and get a sought-after CWC coaster as a thank you and you’ll bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping to preserve Cold War history. Just go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/⁠⁠⁠⁠ If a monthly contribution is not your cup of tea, We also welcome one-off donations via the same link. Find the ideal gift for the Cold War enthusiast in your life! Just go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/store/⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONTINUE THE COLD WAR CONVERSATION Follow us on BlueSky ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bsky.app/profile/coldwarpod.bsky.social⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow us on Threads ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.threads.net/@coldwarconversations⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow us on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Youtube ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Cold War Conversations, the home of real stories of the Cold War.
0:06.3	Abby's just woken up. It's 7.31 and she's forgotten to ring the doctor. There's no point
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1:01.3	Shopify.com slash setup. So just leave it in your safe and don't get it wet. And I said,
1:09.0	okay, but what would happen if it got wet? I mean, how bad could it be?
1:12.4	And he goes, oh, how do I explain this to somebody who's not a nuclear scientist? He goes,
1:16.8	okay, remember Hiroshima? And I'm like, yeah. And he goes, picture Hiroshima, but without the explosion,
1:24.1	but the same amount of dead people. This is Cold War Conversations.
1:30.7	If you're new here, you've come to the right place to listen to Cold War history.
	...

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