Koskov is a corrupt Soviet general in business for himself, who carefully plays both sides of the Cold War. Initially, Koskov gives the impression of a somewhat anxious pawn in the battle between the Soviet Union and the West, when he is, in reality, a mastermind using all means to his own advantage. He dotes on his mistress, Kara Milovy, giving her all manner of expensive gifts, but when necessary will readily sign her death warrant. Koskov fakes his own defection, using Milovy as a sniper to make it look real. James Bond is assigned in aiding him across the border into Austria. Koskov is, however, working with black market arms dealer Brad Whitaker. At a safe house in England, Koskov falsely and deliberately fingers KGB head General Pushkin as the mastermind of Smiert Shpionam or Death to Spies, a plot to kill off American and British spies, knowing that the setup will lead to Pushkin's assassination, with Bond acting as the assassin. With Pushkin dead, he will then engage in a three-way arms deal with Whitaker and Colonel Feyador in Afghanistan to obtain valuable opium. Once the deal ends, Koskov will return to Russia with arms from the deal that gave them the payoff for the opium, a promise that the defection was an undercover assignment from Pushkin, and Bond in tow so he can gain control of the KGB (this last part is never actually said but is heavily implied). Luckily, Bond suspects the truth and helps Pushkin fake his death to force Koskov into the open. However, Koskov tricks Milovy into distrusting Bond and kidnaps them both, taking them to Feyador's airbase in Afghanistan via aeroplane from Tangier, although Bond is quickly able to win her trust back when he reveals that he was the 'assassin' who almost killed her (Koskov had given instructions for the assassin to be killed, but Bond recognised Kara's obvious inexperience with a rifle and merely shot the weapon rather than her). The two subsequently escape and Bond destroys the opium and later takes Whitaker down. This was the last attempt (again unsuccessful) that Koskov made to kill Bond, though on each occasion he had shown his cowardice by ordering others to target Bond rather than carry out a murder attempt himself. It is then that Koskov is arrested by Pushkin, and it is implied that he is to be executed when Pushkin orders that he be put on the next plane to Moscow in a diplomatic bag. Show less «