the seniormost Russian generals Eduard Ekk and Georgiy Rozalion-Soshalsky. In 1924, a cavalry brigade staffed completely by Wrangel's men was formed under the command of Russian Gen Sergei Ulagay in order to overthrow Albania′s pro-Soviet Orthodox leader Fan Noli, who had seized power in June that year, and re-install Muslim Ahmet Zogu, which was carried out in December that year. On 1 September 1924, Gen Pyotr Wrangel founded the Russian All-Military Union (ROVS), until 1927 headquartered in Karlovci, a global organisation designed to unite all Russian military officers outside Russia. According to the data contained in the declassified UDBA study compiled in 1955, in 1934 ROVS's membership in Yugoslavia totaled 25.000 people. Department IV of ROVS (Yugoslavia) was established with headquarters in Belgrade, Gen Eduard Ekk heading it until 1933. Department IV was in constant liaison with Yugoslavia's Ministry of the Army and Navy. The USSR's intelligence agencies were undertaking efforts to recruit agents in Yugoslavia from the early 1930s, including from among the White emigres such as Leonid Linitsky, who was exposed and arrested by the Yugoslavian police in 1935. In 1938, the Soviet government sponsored a planned coup d'état designed to remove the Stojadinović government, which was resented by Edvard Beneš, the president of Czechoslovakia, and establish an anti-German military regime: Soviet intelligence officer Pyotr Zubov was given $200,000 in cash meant for the Serbian military officers selected by Czechs to execute the coup; the plan failed, as Zubov, after judging the Serbian officers to be unfit for the mission, refused to make advance payment. Soviet influence, World War II While Yugoslavia remained a monarchy, Communist elements in Yugoslavia retained some influence in the National Assembly (in December 1920, the government prohibited all Communist activities). Relations between Yugoslavian Communists and the officials of the Soviet Union were developed. Initial relations, however, remained tense. In 1937, for example, Stalin had the Secretary-General of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia, Milan Gorkić, murdered in Moscow during the Great Purge. At the end of June 1940, the first Soviet ambassador (″polpred″, i.e. plenipotentiary representative) to Yugoslavia, Viktor Plotnikov, was appointed. The March 1941 coup d'état against the pro-German government of Yugoslavia, while primarily backed by the UK government, was also actively supported by Soviet intelligence agencies, GRU and NKVD, following Stalin′s instructions, with a view to strengthening the USSR's strategic position in the Balkans. On 5 April 1941, the new government