Kuczynski, Jürgen

Jürgen Kuczynski (German pronunciation: [ˈjʏʁɡn̩ kuˈtʃɪnskiː]; 17 September 1904 – 6 August 1997) was a German economist, journalist, and communist. He also provided intelligence to the Soviet Union during World War II. By 1936, Kuczynski had followed his father and other family into exile in England. After being temporarily interned as an enemy alien at the start of World War II, during the war he was recruited by the OSS, the precursor of the CIA, to recruit German communists to be sent to Germany to make contact with resistance groups. He also served in the US Army as a colonel in its Air Force, on a team conducting the Strategic Bombing Survey. At the same time he passed their results "to Soviet intelligence." In 1942 he recruited Klaus Fuchs to Soviet intelligence and introduced the physicist to his sister Ursula Kuczynski (aka Ruth Werner), who had become a "star agent" of the Soviet Union. She acted as Fuchs's courier for four years, but as far as is known she was never placed under surveillance by MI5, and was not prevented from leaving England in 1950 shortly before Fuchs went on trial. After the war, Kuczynski initially returned to Germany on assignment with the US Army, first serving in the American zone of what became West Germany. Appointed to an academic position by the Soviet authorities, he settled in East Germany. He joined the "Communist-dominated Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED)", which directed him to work in academic and cultural affairs. He became one of East Germany's leading intellectuals after the war, maintaining his Marxist faith and communist affiliations. He wrote prolifically and is credited with nearly 4,000 titles.