Oswald’s Defection and Admission to Soviet Residence
Two months and twenty-two days elapsed from Oswald’s arrival in Moscow until he left for Minsk, and the Commission considered whether he was accepted for residence and sent to Minsk unusually soon because he had been expected or developed an undercover relationship with the Soviet Government. The Commission relied primarily on Oswald’s “Historic Diary” (which likely began in Minsk, not Moscow, based on Marina Oswald’s testimony and supporting evidence), American Embassy records in Moscow, Embassy officials’ testimony, and notes from reporters Aline Mosby and Priscilla Johnson, with the diary’s authenticity verified through handwriting and stylistic analysis showing no indication of other writers. On October 16, 1959, the day he arrived, Oswald told his Intourist guide Rima Shirokova he wished to renounce citizenship; the KGB, which in 1959 had informants among virtually all Intourist guides, undoubtedly investigated him fully. On October 21 he was informed his visa had expired and he would be required to leave within two hours. According to his diary, Oswald attempted suicide when his citizenship application was denied, which would suggest no undercover relationship existed at that time; this is supported by medical records from Botkinskaya Hospital (October 21–28) treating a self-inflicted wrist wound, the autopsy scar consistent with such an attempt, Marina Oswald’s testimony that he became angry when asked about the scar, and witnesses’ observations of his arrogant, untrusting character. He appeared at the American Embassy on October 31 without mentioning his recent hospitalization, providing the first U.S. Government notification of his presence in Russia.
CHAPTER VI
Chapter VI examines Lee Harvey Oswald’s activities during his residence in the Soviet Union from October 1959 through mid-1962. The chapter covers his citizenship renunciation attempts at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, speculation about Soviet coaching of his behavior, the timeline of his residency approval, assessments by the CIA and State Department on the reasonableness of that timeline, his life in Minsk, verification of his presence there, his income and benefits, analysis of whether those benefits suggest undercover activity, and his employment and job performance at the Minsk Radio Factory.
Oswald’s October 31, 1959 Citizenship Renunciation Request at U.S. Embassy Moscow
On October 31, 1959, Oswald visited the U.S. Embassy in Moscow and declared his wish to renounce his U.S. citizenship. Consul Richard E. Snyder refused to accept the renunciation, telling Oswald he would need to return with proper paperwork. During the approximately 40-minute interview, Oswald handed over his passport and a handwritten statement requesting that his citizenship be “revoked” and affirming his allegiance to the Soviet Union. The FBI confirmed the note was in Oswald’s handwriting, and Snyder testified that its phrases were consistent with Oswald’s speech and demeanor. Oswald also informed Snyder that he had been a radar operator in the Marine Corps and had told a Soviet official he would share any information he possessed about the Marines and radar operations.
Oswald’s November 3, 1959 Follow-Up Citizenship Renunciation Letter
In a letter to the U.S. Embassy dated November 3, 1959, Oswald again requested that his American citizenship be revoked and protested the Embassy’s refusal to accept his renunciation on October 31. Oswald never filed a formal renunciation. A comparison of this letter and the October 31 note with Section 349(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act suggests Oswald had read the statute but understood it imperfectly; he attempted to use three of the four statutory methods of surrendering citizenship but succeeded in none.
Speculation of Soviet Coaching of Oswald’s Embassy and Media Interactions
Both at the Embassy and in a subsequent interview with American journalist Priscilla Johnson, Oswald displayed familiarity with Communist ideological arguments, leading those he spoke with to speculate that he may have received instruction from Soviet authorities. His familiarity with citizenship renunciation law, observed by Embassy officials, could also be read as evidence of Soviet coaching. However, Oswald was known to be an avid reader who had read Communist literature on his own while in the Marine Corps and before. His “Historic Diary” indicates he did not tell his Intourist guide about his planned Embassy visit because he feared she would disapprove. While Snyder received a favorable impression of Oswald as an intelligent person, journalist Priscilla Johnson, who spent about five hours with him, described him as someone who liked to create the pretense of engaging in abstract discussion but lacked the capacity for sustained logical argument.
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