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The Ministerium für Staatssicherheit ( German for Ministry for State Security), commonly known by the abbreviation Stasi, was the main security ( secret police) and intelligence organization of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). The Stasi was headquartered in the capital, East Berlin, with an extensive complex in Lichtenberg and several smaller complexes throughout the city. The Stasi was widely regarded as one of the most effective intelligence agencies in the world.

The Stasi was founded on February 8, 1950. Wilhelm Zaisser was its first leader, and Erich Mielke his deputy. In 1955, Mielke became head of the Stasi, and Markus Wolf became head of the Hauptverwaltung Aufklärung (HVA), its foreign intelligence section. The Stasi was modeled on the Soviet KGBFor other meanings, see KGB (disambiguation). The Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti (or KGB ( Russian: ; English: Committee for State Security , was the name of the main Soviet Security Agency and intelligence agency, as well as the main secret police, which regarded the Stasi as an extremely loyal and effective partner among the intelligence services of the Warsaw PactHeinz Hoffmann, Polish Premier Wojciech Jaruzelski, Warsaw Pact Commander in Chief Viktor Kulikov, and Czechoslovakian Defence Minister Martin Dzur discussing Warsaw Pact manoeuvres in Poland, March 1981. The Warsaw Pact or Warsaw Treaty was a military al countries.

The Stasi's influence over almost every aspect of life in the German Democratic Republic cannot be overestimated. Until the mid- 1980sMillennia: 1st millennium 2nd millennium 3rd millennium Centuries: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s 2030s Years: 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 Events and trends, a civilian network of informants (Inoffizielle Mitarbeiter [IMs], or unofficial collaborators) grew within the GDR, and in West GermanyWest Germany was the informal but almost universally used name for the Federal Republic of Germany from 1949 until 1990, during which years the Federal Republic did not yet include the eastern part of Germany. Since the German reunification of 1990, the F as well. By the East German collapse in 19891989 is a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). Events January January 7 Akihito becomes Emperor of Japan following the death of Hirohito. The Heisei period begins January 8 the Kegworth Air Disaster A British Midland Boeing 737 cra, it is estimated that the Stasi had 91,000 full time employees and 300,000 informants. This means approximately one in fifty East Germans collaborated with the Stasi, possibly the highest penetration of any society by a security apparatus.

The Stasi monitored politically "incorrect" behavior among all citizens of East Germany, comparable to activity of the former GestapoGestapo is a portmanteau contraction of the name of the official secret police force of Nazi Germany, Geheime Staatspolizei ( German for "secret state police"). History The Gestapo was established on April 26, 1933 in Prussia. With members recruited from. During the 19891989 is a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). Events January January 7 Akihito becomes Emperor of Japan following the death of Hirohito. The Heisei period begins January 8 the Kegworth Air Disaster A British Midland Boeing 737 cra peaceful revolution, the Stasi offices were overrun by enraged citizens, but not before a huge amount of compromising material was destroyed by Stasi officers. The remaining files are available for review to all people who were reported upon, often revealing that friends, colleagues, husbands, wives, and other family members were regularly filing reports with the Stasi.

After German unification, it was revealed that the Stasi also secretly aided left-wing terrorist groups such as the Red Army FactionRAF Logo The Red Army Faction (in German: Rote Armee Fraktion RAF , also known as the Baader-Meinhof Gang was postwar Germany's most active radical leftist paramilitary group, which is widely regarded as a terrorist organization. It operated from the 1970. Loss of support from the Stasi was a major factor in the dissolution of these groups.