Burgess and Maclean Surface in Moscow

Burgess and Maclean’s defection to Moscow became public knowledge through a press conference they gave in February 1956. The event came as a “complete surprise” to the Canadian Embassy and Western journalists. The British Ambassador in Moscow thought the decision was intended to pre-empt embarrassing questions about Burgess and Maclean during Soviet leaders Bulganin and Khrushchev’s forthcoming visit to the UK. He also gauged that the Soviets hoped “that by drawing attention to this case they may revive American suspicions and contribute in some small degree to a worsening of Anglo-American relations” (CDMB00026). Reports from the Canadian Consul General in Chicago bore out this analysis. American editorials claimed the press conference lent credence to General Douglas MacArthur’s claims that his secret Korean War plans had been passed to enemies by Burgess or Maclean. The Chicago Tribune concluded that “the moral for Americans ought to be that they will be prudent to distrust their alleged friends as much as their proclaimed enemies” (CDMB00025).