Valentin berezhkov biography

No one could have foreseen Valentin Berezhkov’s rise to prominence as Stalin’s professional interpreter. Born in 1916 to an aristocratic family, Berezhkov began his life on the periphery of the newly-founded Soviet Union in Kiev, Ukraine.

Turmoil defined the region during this period.

Valentin berezhkov biography wikipedia

During the early 1930s, Stalin introduced a policy of forced agricultural collectivization, which required Ukrainian farmers to work on collective farms under penalty of death. When Ukrainian peasants resisted, Stalin cut off food supplies to the region, resulting in a famine that killed over 4 million people.

Despite the scope of Stalin’s brutality, as the son of wealthy Ukrainian parents, Berezhkov grew up relatively insulated from the events of the day. Thanks to his privileged background, he was able to receive language training in German and English, and eventually went on to serve in Soviet Navy.

However, fate had bigger plans for Berez