The director of Russia’s FSB security service has suggested that the country’s spies should take pride in its origins, all the way back to the secret policemen who organised Lenin’s Red Terror. In an interview to coincide with the centenary of the establishment of the Cheka, Lenin’s secret police, Alexander Bortnikov, emphasised the heroic side of their exploits.

Asked if he was embarrassed that modern-day FSB officers were often called “chekists” after the ruthless service, Mr Bortnikov said: “It does not bother me at all. It became a figure of speech a long time ago.”

The FSB director said “a significant part” of trials during the purges of the 1930s “had an objective side”. Hundreds of thousands of people were executed and historians say many