Ministry for State Security - Definition and Overview

Numerous countries and governments have or have had a Ministry for State Security or Ministry of State Security.

• The Soviet Union's secret police were once called the Ministry for State Security, and it appears that the current FSB of the Russian Federation will be renamed the "Ministry for State Security".
• East Germany's secret police were also officially the Ministry for State Security, but were more commonly (and infamously) known as the Stasi.
• The People's Republic of China has a governmental agency called the Ministry of State Security; its functions are largely the same as the above two.
• Turkmenistan under President Niyazov also has a Ministry of State Security.

Similar sounding agencies

• Communist Albania under Enver Hoxha had a Directorate of State Security.
• Apartheid South Africa had the Bureau of State Security (BOSS).