Semyon Aralov

He also joined the Imperial Russian Army in 1905 and during the First World War he was promoted to the rank of Major in the Military Intelligence department.

He participated in the October RevolutionAralov was a founding member of the Cheka and in January 1918 he was appointed head of the Moscow Military District.

By September 1918, he was appointed to the Military Revolutionary Committee and in charge of hostage taking, whereby the Red Army seized family members of former Tsarist officers whose loyalty they doubted.

When the Registration Unit, as the Red Army Intelligence Directorate was originally called, was founded in October 1918, he was the head, joining Trotsky and Jukums Vācietis on the Executive Bureau of the Defence Council.

His subsequent diplomatic career included postings in the United States, Germany and Japan.

Aralov in Ankara , Autochrome by Frédéric Gadmer , 1922
Mustafa Kemal's visit to Çay . From left to right: chief of staff of the Western Front Miralay Asim Bey (Gündüz), commander of the Western Front Mirliva Ismet Pasha (İnönü), unknown, military attaché of the Soviet Russia K.K. Zvonarev, ambassador of Soviet Russia S.I. Aralov, Mustafa Kemal Pasha , ambassador of Azerbaijan SSR Ibrahim Abilov, commander of First Army Mirliva Ali Ihsan Pasha (Sâbis), in the morning of 31 March 1922.