Editing Alpha Group (section)

===Shuffling and reforms===
Alpha Group was severely downgraded during the [[Dissolution of the Soviet Union|dissolution and collapse of the Soviet Union]]. After the fall of the USSR, both Alpha and Vympel were transferred to the newly formed [[Federal Protective Service (Russia)|Main Guard Directorate (GUO)]], which was established on the basis of the KGB's [[Ninth Chief Directorate]]. In 1993, they were taken from GUO control, and for a time being put under the jurisdiction of the [[Ministry of Internal Affairs (Russia)|Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD)]].<ref name=early>{{cite web|url=http://www.psan.org/document518.html |title=The Early Yeltsin Years |access-date=2008-02-01 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080201083223/http://www.psan.org/document518.html |archive-date=1 February 2008}} by Jonathan Littell.</ref> As part of the government shakeup following the June 1995 [[Budyonnovsk hospital hostage crisis]] in which the Alpha Group had a leading role, Yeltsin fired the first Director of the [[Federal Security Service (Russia)|Federal Security Service (FSB)]], [[Sergei Stepashin]]. Two months later, Alpha and Vityaz were both transferred from the MVD to the FSB. Simultaneously, [[Mikhail Barsukov]] became the new head of the organization, and created the FSB Anti-Terrorist Center (ATC), headed by Gen. Viktor Zorkin.<ref name=early/><ref name=rulers/> Directorate "A" (Alpha) was tasked with protecting transportation and buildings while Directorate "V" (Vega/Vympel) was tasked with protecting strategic sites (another Directorate, "K", was tasked with ideological counterintelligence); "A" and "V" were soon joined in a ''Tsentr [[Spetsnaz]]'' (Special Purpose Center) under Gen. [[Vladimir Pronichev]].<ref name=early/>

Meanwhile, Alpha veterans became active in legitimate businesses (such as the private security company [https://www.alpha-b.ru/eng/ Alpha-B] co-founded by Col. Golovatov in August 1993<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.alpha-b.ru/eng/ |title=Dear clients of LLC private security company "ALPHA-B"! « ООО ЧОП АЛЬФА-Б – Частное Охранное Предприятие |publisher=Alpha-b.ru |date=18 August 1993 |access-date=3 March 2014}}</ref>) in [[Russian mafia|organised crime]], as well as in politics.<ref name=guide/> The Alpha veterans' association, led by Sergey Goncharov, strongly opposed Russian President Yeltsin faction's party, [[Our Home – Russia]], in the [[1995 Russian legislative election|legislative election of 1995]] (Goncharov later became a [[State Duma]] deputy).<ref name=guide>Ibp Usa, ''Russia Foreign Policy and Government Guide'', page 113.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://english.pravda.ru/russia/politics/20-08-2004/6631-alpha-0/ |title=Alpha Russian special service unit is as strong as ever |publisher=English pravda.ru |date=20 August 2004 |access-date=3 March 2014}}</ref> Gen. Karpukhin, who resigned from the service following the 1991 coup attempt, became chief of security to Kazakh President [[Nursultan Nazarbayev]], after which he worked with private security companies in Moscow, and ran unsuccessfully for the Duma as a member of the Union of Patriots in 1995.<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1426138/Maj-Gen-Viktor-Karpukhin.html Maj-Gen Viktor Karpukhin – Telegraph].</ref>