Lavrenti Beria nació el 29 de marzo de 1899 en Merkheuli, Kutaisi Governorate, Russian Empire [ahora Republic of Georgia]. Murió el 23 de diciembre de 1953 en Moscú, RSFSR, URSS (ahora Rusia).
It was alleged at his trial that he had maintained secret connections with foreign intelligence services. In particular, attempts to initiate peace talks with Hitler in 1941 through the ambassador of the Kingdom of Bulgaria were classified as treason, though Beria had been acting on the orders of Stalin and Molotov.