Soviet occupation chief in North Korea and first ambassador; he conveyed Kim Il Sung's unification plan to Stalin, brokered approval for war
Andrei Lankov assessed that Shtykov 'made more impact on Korean history than any foreigner other than Japanese colonial politicians' and was 'the actual architect of the North Korean state as it emerged in 1945–50.'
A Soviet military-political leader born to a Belarusian peasant family who rose through the Komsomol in Leningrad under Zhdanov, became Second Secretary of the Leningrad Regional Committee; during World War II he served as political commissar on several fronts, reaching Colonel-General, and entered northern Korea in August 1945 for Japan's surrender. As de facto head of the Soviet occupation (1945–1948) he organized the Soviet Civil Administration, installed Kim Il Sung in power, designed the land reform, and as first Soviet ambassador to the DPRK (1948–1950) transmitted Kim's plan for armed unification to Stalin and secured approval for the invasion. When the war turned, he was blamed for intelligence failure, dismissed and demoted in December 1950; rehabilitated under Khrushchev, he served as party secretary of Novgorod and Primorye and ambassador to Hungary before dying in 1964.
Activities and affiliations
Career Timeline
- 1931–1938Komsomol activist → First Secretary, Vyborg District Committee, Leningrad
- 1938–1945Second Secretary, Leningrad Regional Committee; Military Council member, multiple fronts
- 1944Promoted to Colonel-General
- 1945–1948De facto head of Soviet occupation of North Korea; organized Soviet Civil Administration
- 1948–1950First Soviet Ambassador to the DPRK
- 1951–1954Deputy Chairman, Kaluga Oblast Executive Committee (demoted)
- 1954–1959First Secretary, Novgorod Regional → Primorskiy Krai Committee
- 1959–1960Soviet Ambassador to Hungary
Related historical events
- 1946–1948Social reform in northern Korea and founding of the DPRKHead of Soviet occupation; co-author of the constitutionWith Stalin, he reviewed and edited the draft 1948 constitution in Moscow, laying the republic's legal foundation; he and fellow Soviet generals also predetermined the seat allocation for the August election.
- 1950–1953The Korean WarBroker of the invasion's approvalAs first ambassador to the DPRK, he conveyed Kim Il Sung's invasion plan to Stalin and secured approval for the war.