Chapter 10
Roosevelt’s Betrayal of China’s Sovereignty

IV. The Soviet Union Spied on America’s Nuclear Secrets

In February 1945, during the Yalta Conference, Roosevelt mysteriously told Stalin, who was sitting beside him, “We already have an astonishing weapon.” Stalin listened without expression, only slightly nodding his head.

Seeing this, Roosevelt wondered quietly, could it be that our nuclear weapons program was no longer a secret to the Soviets?

Roosevelt believed that the U.S. nuclear weapons program was extremely secretive; after all, they had successfully deceived the Germans. Could it be that they had failed to keep it secret from the Soviets? With this doubt, Roosevelt ordered a thorough investigation after returning home to see if the Manhattan Project had already been leaked.

1. American Scientists Panicked and Urged Roosevelt to Speed Up the Nuclear Weapons Program

In the 1930s, physicists from Britain, Italy, and Germany — such as Chadwick, Fermi, and Steffens — discovered that 1 gram of uranium released energy equivalent to burning 3 tons of coal when undergoing fission. If used in an explosion, the resulting power would be immense and astonishing. This discovery pushed humanity into the “nuclear” era.

Although the United States was the first country to successfully develop and use nuclear weapons in combat, Germany was actually the first to start researching nuclear weapons. When physicists were excited about the scientific discovery, Nazi Germany focused on this technology, intending to apply it in future wars.

In April 1939, Nazi Germany gathered its six top atomic physicists in Berlin for a secret meeting and decided to begin developing the atomic bomb. By September, the nuclear weapons program, codenamed “U,” officially began.

Germany’s plan deeply worried some physicists who understood how terrible the consequences would be if such technology were applied to weapons. At that time, the Italian physicist Fermi, who had fled to the United States, immediately contacted scientists like Szilard and Teller and began urging U.S. authorities to start atomic bomb research.

When they approached the U.S. military with their idea, the military failed to realize the bomb’s massive destructive power and directly rejected the scientists’ proposals.

Faced with this situation, Fermi and other scientists became extremely anxious. They fully understood the huge destructive power of nuclear weapons and feared that if Nazi Germany produced an atomic bomb first, it would bring unprecedented disaster to humanity.

So these scientists, through the respected Albert Einstein, wrote directly to President Roosevelt. The scientists’ recommendations finally convinced Roosevelt.

On December 6, 1939, the U.S. Congress appropriated 2 billion dollars to officially start the “Manhattan Project,” launching the atomic bomb development.

The U.S. and Germany both initiated nuclear weapons programs. To monitor each other’s progress and thwart the opponent, they carried out extensive espionage and sabotage efforts.

The Manhattan Project was massive, involving as many as 600,000 people. Yet, for four years, no German spies managed to obtain any intelligence.

However, what the Americans did not expect was that while they successfully defended against German espionage, they failed to prevent Soviet infiltration. Among these 600,000 people, one Soviet spy successfully penetrated a key position within the Manhattan Project and obtained the intelligence they wanted.

2. By Chance, the Soviet Union Found the Perfect Spy to Infiltrate the American Nuclear Program

In the second half of 1939, the sharp-witted Soviets discovered from various signs that the United States had already launched a nuclear weapons program. Eager to find out how far the Americans had progressed, they initiated a secret espionage operation codenamed “Delmar”, specifically aimed at gathering intelligence on the U.S. nuclear weapons project.

After a rigorous selection process by Soviet military intelligence, they finally identified a candidate for the “Delmar” mission among newly enlisted soldiers. This soldier’s name was Dmitry. Before enlisting, Dmitry had graduated with excellent grades from a technical college in Moscow and had been accepted to pursue graduate studies.

Before starting graduate school, he chose to enlist and join the Soviet Red Army. Dmitry was selected by Soviet intelligence largely due to his personal background.

Dmitry’s father was Soviet and skilled in carpentry. Once, his father met and fell deeply in love with a beautiful young woman and decided to marry her. However, due to poverty, he could not afford a wedding. In desperation, he went to America to work, hoping to earn money and return to marry his beloved.

Upon arriving in the U.S., Dmitry’s father quickly found a well-paying job using his carpentry skills. He lived frugally, sending all the money he earned back home to his beloved, who was deeply moved and eventually came to America to marry the young carpenter.

In 1915, their first child, Dmitry, was born in the United States. The couple lived in the U.S. for another 20 years and had three more children during that time.

As the children grew and expenses increased, despite his father’s hard work and endurance, it became very difficult to support a family of five on his own, and life was financially tight.

Under these circumstances, the family returned to the Soviet Union in 1933, settling in the Khabarovsk region of the Soviet Far East.

Before returning, Dmitry had lived in the U.S. for a full 18 years. He was fluent in English and well acquainted with American life.

The following year after returning to the USSR, Dmitry decided to attend higher education to continue his studies. He moved alone to Moscow, was successfully admitted to a technical college, graduated with honors, and was recommended for graduate studies.

Given Dmitry’s unique background and experiences, Soviet intelligence considered him a rare and valuable candidate for espionage work. When consulted, Dmitry eagerly accepted the opportunity to try this new and mysterious job.

In the autumn of 1939, after a series of trainings, Dmitry was sent to the United States by Soviet military intelligence to carry out the “Delmar” mission solo, under the alias “Delmar”. His task was to collect intelligence on the American nuclear weapons development program.

3. Deep Into the Tiger’s Den: The Soviet Spy Successfully Obtains the Desired Intelligence

Because the secrecy measures for the American nuclear weapons development program, the “Manhattan Project”, were extremely stringent, Dmitri made little progress during his first few years in the United States.

By the fall of 1942, although Dmitri had not yet provided any valuable intelligence, the Soviet military intelligence agencies had already learned through other channels that nuclear research laboratories had been established in the American cities of Los Angeles and Chicago.

Consequently, the Soviet Union immediately launched its own nuclear weapons development efforts. Although it started later than the United States and Germany, it was still underway.

In 1943, Dmitri, who had been lying low for years, finally got his chance. At that time, World War II was at its most intense stage, and due to the urgent need for troops, Dmitri was required to join the US military.

At first, Dmitri was very troubled, fearing that joining the US military would restrict his movements and make his espionage work more difficult. However, what he did not expect was that this move would actually advance his career as a spy.

It turned out that the unit Dmitri was assigned to was not a frontline combat unit but a research institution. Soon after, he was sent to an advanced training course, which, surprisingly, was a training program related to the development of radioactive materials.

There were more than 30 people in this training class. Some of them later became renowned scientists, and others became senior analysts at important American companies.

In August 1944, Dmitri successfully graduated from the training class and was assigned as a technician at a secret facility producing radioactive materials in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. This factory produced radioactive materials used for the development of the atomic bomb.

When Dmitri first arrived at Oak Ridge, he was stunned by the scene: tens of thousands of scientists, engineers, and technicians gathered there, along with a large number of police, federal agents, and military intelligence operatives who were responsible for security.

This city was essentially a restricted zone, with multiple stringent security checks to enter and exit. At that time, the city had no official name or mark on maps, and was referred to externally only as a certain company. In fact, it was producing uranium, a crucial element for making atomic bombs.

Before this, the Soviet military intelligence department only knew about nuclear research labs in Los Angeles and Chicago and had no knowledge of this facility. Therefore, Dmitri’s intelligence was extremely valuable to the Soviet Union. Thanks to him, Soviet intelligence was able to identify the exact location of this secret atomic energy city that the Americans had hidden for many years.

In early 1945, because of Dmitri’s technical skills and proactive work, the US military adjusted his position and promoted him, transferring him from one laboratory to another. This new laboratory was responsible for a separate research task within the US nuclear program. The new role allowed Dmitri better access to more secrets of the American nuclear program.

During this time, Dmitri uncovered information about the US atomic energy facilities, their structure, the production volume of nuclear materials, and the number of experts involved in the development. He also used his work connections to maintain contact with other secret atomic energy units in the US.

All these details were secretly reported by Dmitri back to the Soviet Union.

This explains why Stalin responded so nonchalantly when Roosevelt mysteriously mentioned “a terrible new weapon” at the Yalta Conference. It was all thanks to “Delmar” (Dmitri’s codename).

In August 1945, after the US dropped atomic bombs on Japan, Dmitri’s laboratory held a celebration. Moreover, this laboratory planned to send experts to Japan to observe the bombing effects firsthand. Dmitri was selected for this mission, but for unknown reasons, the inspection plan was later canceled.

4. A Difficult Life: The Soviet Hero Spy Almost Became Unemployed

In September 1945, after World War II ended, Dmitri retired from the US military. After retirement, he wanted to leave Oak Ridge. However, because Roosevelt had begun to suspect that the nuclear project had been leaked — based on Stalin’s reactions — he ordered counterintelligence agencies to thoroughly investigate the matter.

Soon, Dmitri came under investigation by American intelligence because both his parents had settled in the Soviet Union, and he had lived there with them for many years.

Subsequently, US counterintelligence scrutinized everyone Dmitri knew at the Oak Ridge laboratory. They even interviewed neighbors from the city where Dmitri’s father had once lived.

Despite these efforts, the American intelligence agencies made little progress. After much turmoil, they could find no evidence against Dmitri. In May 1949, Dmitri “luckily” left the US and returned to the Soviet Union.

In June 1949, General Zakharov, head of the Soviet Army’s Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) 2nd Department, issued an order: “Private Dmitri, born in 1915, is to be discharged from the armed forces at the rank of private.”

Dmitri had fought for the ‘state” for ten years in the lion’s den and made great contributions, but in the end, he was discharged at the same rank he enlisted with — a private. This treatment by the 2nd Department of the GRU is indeed puzzling.

At first, Dmitri didn’t think much of it. He returned to his alma mater in Moscow to complete his graduate studies and obtained a Candidate of Technical Sciences degree two years later. However, when it came time for job placement after graduation, he realized his ‘trouble” was greater than he thought.

No university, research institute, or even factory was willing to hire him. The reason was that nobody understood his résumé. How could someone who had not committed any mistakes remain a private with no promotion for ten years of service?

Dmitri knew he could not reveal his true secret to those questioning him, so he kept it hidden and continued searching for a position. Yet years passed, and no institution accepted him.

Frustrated, Dmitri decided to write a letter explaining his situation to the director of the Soviet military intelligence. Fortunately, his letter caught the attention of Lieutenant General Shalyn, head of the GRU intelligence department. Upon receiving the letter, Shalyn immediately ordered his subordinates to resolve Dmitri’s employment issue and personally wrote to the Minister of Higher Education, Stolyetov, on March 6, 1953, explaining the situation.

In the letter, he wrote:
‘this certifies that Dmitri served in the Soviet Army from 1939 to 1949. Due to involvement with state and military secrets, the nature of his service cannot be disclosed. If this affects his placement by the Ministry of Higher Education, please contact our representative directly. He will explain everything to you face-to-face.”

Thus, after many hardships, Dmitri finally resolved his employment problem.

The facts show that Dmitri’s espionage experience was indeed unparalleled. That he was able to infiltrate the tightly guarded US atomic energy facilities without detection by American intelligence was remarkable.

This factory produced uranium and other essential elements for the atomic bomb, with all information and materials classified as the highest US national and military secrets. Any intelligence Dmitri gathered there was of immense value.

Dmitri eventually found a position at a university, where he worked until retirement.

He should indeed feel fortunate that the devil Stalin did not kill him to silence him — an act of mercy by the wolf! Stalin committed countless evil deeds, but the Communist Party ultimately could not escape justice — the Soviet Union officially dissolved in 1991!