Image of the Air Force wings with the museum name underneath

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Military Liaison Mission Sign

Immediately after World War II, the Western allied powers made agreements with the Soviet Union to allow the establishment of small military liaison missions within the German zones of occupation. The United States Military Liaison Mission (USMLM) to the Soviets was established in Potsdam, Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR or German Democratic Republic), which was informally known in English as East Germany, on April 1, 1947.

U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps personnel served in the USMLM. Generally unknown by the public, they played an important role in gathering intelligence during the Cold War. With the reunification of Germany and the Cold War's end, the USMLM was inactivated on Oct. 1, 1990, and this sign from the mission was preserved.

Click here to return to the Cold War Gallery.