Federal Protective Service (Russia)

In the Russian Federation, the Federal Protective Service (FSO) () is a federal government agency concerned with the tasks related to the protection of several, mandated by the relevant law, high-ranking state officials, including the President of Russia, as well as certain federal properties. It traces its origin to the USSR's Ninth Chief Directorate of the KGB and later Presidential Security Service (SBP) led by KGB general Alexander Korzhakov.

On May 27, 1996, the law "On State Protection" reorganized the GUO (Glavnoye Upravlenie Okhrani) into the FSO (Federal Protection Service). Under article 7 of the law, "the President of the Russian Federation, while in office, shall not be allowed to forgo state protection."

Structure and command

Since May 18, 2008, the agency is headed by General Evgeny Murov. FSO has roughly 20,000 - 30,000 uniformed personnel plus several thousand plainclothes personnel and controls the "black box" that can be used in the event of global nuclear war. It also operates a secure communications system for senior government officials.

One of the FSO units is the Kremlin Regiment.

The FSO is a powerful institution with a range of rights and powers, including the right to conduct searches and surveillance without warrants, make arrests, and give orders to other state agencies.

History of the federal protective services

• Special department by VChK College
• Special department of GPU
• Special department......
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