The Raid Toward Prague

May 1945

Kevin Keefer took a leave of absence from Army Counterintelligence to search for the origin of the first military action of the Cold War, which occurred in Czechoslovakia in May 1945. Kevin was familiar with his fathers relentless efforts to uncover the circumstances surrounding this event, in which his father played an important role. His father died before he could complete his research. Kevin took it upon himself to continue it. After visits to the Czech Republic and pursuing leads in the United States, he eventually hit pay dirt when he came across extensive files in a Pentagon storage area. Kevin was surprised to find that the raid had almost failed, namely, the capture of intelligence on the Soviet Army, which were in the possession of the German Army headquarters, which had retreated into Czechoslovakia. Czech partisans guarding the headquarters refused passage of the truck his father had seized and insisted on taking it back with him. Finally, only after citing that he was under direct orders from Eisenhower did the partisans relent. Whether Eisenhower actually was involved in the raid is not clear. However, Eisenhower was familiar with Washingtons proclivity to acquire data on the military capabilities of the Soviets.