Wang Ye had guessed correctly. Once the car left the airport, Rosiana, seated beside him, first asked with a smile about his trip abroad. Then the conversation shifted to business.
"Misha, have you heard? The major security apparatuses have been undergoing a major reshuffle lately. It involves important departments like the Federal Security Service, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Defense, and the National Guard. Your old friend Shoigu is said to be moving up. There's a lot of support for him."
Of course Wang Ye knew about something this important. But he had been occupied with the WTO accession negotiations recently and had not paid much attention. Now that Rosiana had brought it up, his interest was piqued.
It sounded like this would be no small move. Were all the major security apparatuses about to change?
In Russia, there were four major domestic security apparatuses: the Ministry of Defense, the Security Service, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the National Guard.
The Ministry of Defense oversaw roughly two million personnel in the army, navy, Aerospace Forces, Strategic Rocket Forces, and Airborne Troops. It was Russia's primary national defense force.
The Federal Security Service handled counterintelligence, fought large-scale organized crime, and protected national border security. With around thirty thousand personnel, it was the successor organization to the Cheka, the NKVD, and the KGB of the Former Soviet Union era.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs was essentially the police department. It maintained domestic public order, fought large-scale criminal organizations and terrorists, and had around two hundred thousand personnel. It was equivalent to the public security ministry back home.
The National Guard Main Directorate commanded roughly three hundred thousand National Guard troops. Its main duties were domestic counterterrorism operations, protecting important state departments and facilities, and safeguarding senior national leaders.