Royal Military Police versus the Soviets (SOXMIS) in Cold War West Germany (241)

Cold War Conversations

Ian Sanders

Society & Culture, Documentary, History

4.8 • 758 Ratings

🗓️ 24 June 2022

⏱️ 82 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Keith Bailey Joined British Army at 16 in 1973. He was recruited into the Blues and Royals, (Household Cavalry) and served in West Germany as a gunner in Chieftain tanks. However, he was keen to serve in the Royal Military Police and particularly 19 (Support) Platoon known as "The White Mice". Their role was to track the SOXMIS (Soviet Military Mission) in West Germany. SOXMIS operated under a 1946 agreement where the Soviets, British, US and French agreed to exchange mission groups to patrol the opposing side’s then zones of occupation. The agreement continued to 1990 and needless to say both sides bent the rules somewhat… 0:00 Introduction 2:35 Keith Bailey's Military Career and Transition to the Royal Military Police 16:39 The Role of the RMP during the Cold War and Bailey's Experience 19:11 Joining the 19 Support Platoon and Training 23:29 The Presence of Soviet Troops in West Germany and Interactions 38:07 Soviet Intelligence Gathering and Anecdotes 43:28 Discussion about Soviet Precautions and Protocol for Crossing Sectors 51:35 Keith's Collection of Cold War Photos and Discussion on Detaining SOXMIS Vehicles 1:07:03 Reaction to the Fall of the Berlin Wall and Post-Cold War Interactions 1:18:15 Invitation to Facebook Discussion Group and Closing Remarks Table of contents powered by PodcastAI✨ Cold War history is disappearing; however, a simple monthly donation will keep this podcast on the air. You’ll get a sought-after CWC coaster as a thank you and you’ll bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping to preserve Cold War history. Just go to https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ If a financial contribution is not your cup of tea, then you can still help us by leaving written reviews wherever you listen to us as well as sharing us on social media. It really helps us get new guests on the show. I am delighted to welcome Keith Bailey to our Cold War conversation… Episode notes & photos here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode241/ Follow us on Twitter here https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod Facebook here https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/ Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/ Support the project! https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/ Youtube https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Cold War Conversations, the home of real stories of the Cold War.
0:05.9	It was wonderful, just one of the moments where there's no way they were getting out of it
0:09.2	because it was a narrow track.
0:11.2	And it turned out to be one of the Russian majors and his driver doing a naughty wrecky in a restricted area.
0:21.1	This is Cold War Conversations. This is Cold War Conversations.
0:25.7	If you're new here, you've come to the right place to listen to first-hand Cold War
0:30.6	history accounts. Do make sure you follow us in your podcast app so you don't miss out
0:35.7	on any of the episodes. Keith Bailey joined the
0:40.8	British Army at 16 in 1973. He was recruited into the Blues and Royals part of the household
0:48.1	cavalry and served in West Germany as a gunner in chieftain tanks. However, he was keen to serve in the Royal
0:56.0	Military Police, particularly 19 support platoon, known as the White Mice. Their role was
1:04.5	to track Soxmiss, the Soviet military mission in West Germany. Soxmiss operated under a 1946 agreement where Soviet, British,
1:15.2	US and French agreed to an exchange of military mission groups to patrol the opposing sides then
1:22.2	zones of occupation. The agreement continued to 1990 and needless to say both sides bent the rules somewhat.
1:34.4	Now, Cold War history is rapidly disappearing, however, a simple monthly donation will help
1:41.8	keep this podcast on the air and continue to preserve these
1:45.6	incredible stories. You'll get a sought after Cold War Conversations coaster as a thank
1:51.7	you and you'll bask in the warm glow of knowing that you're helping to preserve Cold War
1:57.3	history. Hi, I'm Andrew and I'm very proud to support Cold War Conversations with a small donation
2:02.8	each month, because Ian's put together such a brilliant range of interviews.
2:07.1	If you do support the podcast, your wallet will be a tiny bit lighter, but your brain
2:11.3	will be very, very thankful.
	...

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