The practice of assigning security service officers to civilian institutions existed not only in the USSR and the Russian Federation but also in the newly independent states. This is mentioned in the research article by Vadym Chernysh, the Head of CENSS. The article was published in Strategic Security (Global and National Security Institute, University of South Florida, USA).
Here is part of the article that discusses how, even in independent Ukraine, officers of the security services were simultaneously employed in civilian institutions:
“During Soviet times, reserve officers became a well-established and influential tool not only for counterintelligence operations but also for expanding the influence of the KGB beyond the traditional boundaries of undercover work in target organizations. Clearly, the KGB considered this instrument valuable: the practice of assigning reserve officers to other organizations continued for thirty-three years, until the collapse of the USSR.
After the collapse of the USSR in 1991, the 1982 Regulation remained in effect for some time in the newly independent states formed within its former borders. For instance, in Ukraine, this regulation remained classified until 2013, and in Russia, it is still inaccessible to the public. Interestingly, in 1993, then-President of Russia Boris Yeltsin issued an official decree dismissing some high-ranking reserve officers and generals from Soviet ministries and other organizations that were transformed into Russian ones. These organizations included the President of Russia’s Administration, the Government of the Russian Federation, the Interstate Aviation Committee of the USSR, the State Commission on Radio Frequencies of the USSR, and the State Agro-Industrial Committee of the USSR.
There is another indication that the practice of assigning officers existed even after the collapse of the USSR in its former territories. This is the Decree of the President of Ukraine from 2004 “On Additional Measures to Further Democratize Society and Strengthen Civilian Control Over the Activities of Law Enforcement and Intelligence Agencies of Ukraine.” In this decree, then-President of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma ordered the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine, and other law enforcement and intelligence agencies to recall their officers from civilian institutions. He commented on his order to the press, stating that the recalled officers were reserve officers, most of whom had worked in the interests of their external organizations rather than the SBU. The decree recalled reserve officers from the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament), the President’s Administration, the Secretariat of the Cabinet of Ministers, the General Prosecutor’s Office, the National Security and Defense Council, and other central executive bodies.”
The full text of Vadym Chernysh’s article in English can be found at the following link: https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2164&context=jss