Leonid Vladimirovich Shebarshin (Russian: Леонид Владимирович Шебаршин; 24 March 1935 – 30 March 2012) was an intelligence officer and spy for the Soviet Union. He served in the First Chief Directorate (FCD), the foreign intelligence arm of the KGB. In January 1989, he was promoted to the head of the FCD when his former boss, Vladimir Kryuchkov, was promoted to KGB chief. Prior to that Shebarshin had served as Kryuchkov's deputy from April 1987.

After graduating in 1952 from high school with a silver medal, Shebarshin entered the Department of Indian Languages at the Moscow Institute of Oriental Studies. In 1954, the institute was integrated with the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, also known as MGIMO. It was there that Shebarshin continued his studies.

In 1957, he married a classmate, Nina Vassilyevna Pushkina, a student of Chinese languages. Upon graduation, in October 1958, he was assigned to work at the Soviet embassy in Pakistan. In 1962, he was promoted to the post of third secretary of the embassy and got a position at the department of South-East Asian Affairs of the USSR.

In 1962, Shebarshin was invited to join the First Chief Directorate, where he began a new career in the rank of second lieutenant and security officer. After a year of training at an intelligence school, he was sent to work in Pakistan under diplomatic status.

At the time, Pakistan's participation in military-political blocs CENTO and SEATO, its close ties with the United States, conflict with neighboring India, and rapprochement with China made the Pakistan branch important for the Soviet intelligence. The acquisition of sources in U.S. facilities around Pakistan was of utmost importance to the KGB. At the time, the region was a large American colony in India, hosting military advisers, diplomats, spies, journalists, and other important operators.

At the initiative of the Soviet Union, Pakistani President Ayub Khan and Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri met in January 1966 in Tashkent to end the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. This was a major diplomatic success for the Soviet delegation, headed by Alexei Kosygin. Shebarshin was promoted for contributing to the preparation for the negotiations. Shebarshin's supervisors later stated that he "achieved concrete results in the recruiting work," hinting that he bribed intelligence agents and acquired information.

In 1968, Shebarshin returned to Moscow and took a year-long training course for managerial staff. In early 1971, he was sent by the KGB to India, and in 1975, he was appointed as rezident.

While Shebarshin was on the trip, there was another Indo-Pakistani War, which ended with the division of Pakistan and the secession of East Pakistan as Bangladesh, along with a state of emergency in India. Activities of American representatives in India required the close attention of the Soviet intelligence team; for decades, the United States remained the main opponent of the Soviet Union. India's relations with China were also important during that period. Shebarshin's residency in the key areas was assessed positively by the political leadership of the USSR.