The Spy in the Archive Quotes

“the Cheka was more than a secret police force. It was, in the words of those who founded it, a revolutionary terrorist organisation. Lenin was open in using the word "terror" to describe what was needed. How can you have a revolution without firing squads, he asked. Repression and violence were required to preserve the revolution. The Checka was his sword and shield. Its job was not to collect intelligence but to find and destroy enemies.
"We stand for organised terror - this must be said very clearly.”
― Gordon Corera, The Spy in the Archive: How One Man Tried to Kill the KGB