Ivan Raidenovitch Raikov

Major Ivan Raidenovitch Raikov was a GRU major, second in command to Colonel Volgin at Groznyj Grad.

Because of his status as Volgin's lover, he was also the only Groznyj Grad member not of Colonel class to have access to the West Wing of the Groznyj Grad production facility. Because of this EVA advised Naked Snake to steal Raikov's uniform and impersonate as him. Snake, after managing to infiltrate Groznyj Grad, had located Raikov and knocked him out. He then dragged him into a nearby locker and after stealing his clothing, leaving him in nothing more than a thong, locked him up in the locker. A bit later, he was discovered in the locker and relocated from Groznyj Grad.

Sometime after Naked Snake (now known as Big Boss) completed Operation Snake Eater, Raikov lost his position due to his abusive ways against his soldiers and was imprisoned. He was then promptly exiled to the San Hieronymo Base and imprisoned there (most likely after the base was abandoned with its personnel). An unspecified time later a spy unit belonging to the resistance group that would later become the FOXHOUND unit, located Raikov, and shortly thereafter was released by Naked Snake (ironically the same person who had masqueraded as him) and his team. After Campbell asked him why he was on the peninsula, mentioning that his abusive actions came back to haunt him as his comrades turned on him, and eventually deducing why he was on the peninsula on the first place, Raikov angrily accused Campbell of working for Snake, as well as coming to the peninsula to mock him. However, he was caught by surprise when he realized that they had actually came to ask for his help, as they were thinking that his skills and experience as a GRU Major would be of great help Although initially hesitant to join them, especially when their leader had killed Colonel Volgin, he later decided to join them, or as Campbell put it "call a truce and work together against a common enemy" (although he mostly joined to get revenge on Gene's army for imprisoning him and to redeem himself in the eyes of the Soviets, as well as viewing even working for the man who murdered Volgin as being better than staying in a cell humiliated).

Trivia

 * As noted by Major Zero in a radio conversation, "Ivan" is a Slavic version of "John", of which "Jack", Raiden's real name, is the diminutive version.
 * Another interesting connection with the name "John" in Raikov's name is that his middle name "Raidenovitch" literally means "Son of Raiden." This could also be interpreted as meaning "Son of Thunder," which was another name for the Apostle John (referred to collectively with his brother James as "Sons of Thunder").
 * According to a conversation between Snake and Sigint in regards to the Raikov Mask, it can be assumed that Raikov was going to be impersonated by a CIA agent to steal documents in the Soviet Union, but the CIA cancelled the mission prior to the mask ever being used.
 * According to EVA, Raikov has a weak stomach despite having a large appetite.

Behind the Scenes

 * Much humor is derived from his resemblance to Raiden from Metal Gear Solid 2, Raikov being a character created in response to the controversy surrounding Raiden following his replacement of Snake as the main character in MGS2.
 * Raikov was also a usable character in the original Metal Gear Online bundled with Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence.
 * His appearances in MGS3 contain other references to Raiden, including, but not limited to:
 * In the locker in Groznyj Grad where Naked Snake hides Raikov, there is an MGS2 promo poster, featuring Raiden.
 * If the player is attacked in close quarters by Raikov, he will use the same punch-punch-kick combo as used by Raiden.
 * If the player interrogates Raikov using CQC in Subsistence, he will say several identical or similar to lines said by Raiden in MGS2, such as "No, never heard the name before." and "We'll tell them everything together."
 * During the battle with The Sorrow, if the player had previously killed Raikov when stealing his clothes, Raikov's ghost will be walking in the same manner as Raiden does when naked.
 * Shortly before the torture sequence, Volgin grabs Snake's crotch (while disguised as Raikov) in the same manner President Johnson does to Raiden in MGS2.
 * If the player is attacked in close quarters by Raikov, he might do the somersault used by Raiden.
 * While technically not officially confirmed to be canonically recruited into Snake's group, the official strategy guide for Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops covered the mission in the main walkthrough, and didn't cover EVA's, Para-Medic's, or Sigint's missions in the main walkthrough.
 * Raikov losing his position in Portable Ops is a reference to MGS3, where the player could attack Soviet soliders without reprise when disguised as Raikov, as he was "just that kind of guy" from EVA's observations.
 * The Rescuing/Recruiting Raikov Mission in Portable Ops is one of the few missions that has a limited amount of availability (in this case, once the spy unit gives the report for this mission, the player must immediately partake in it, as if not, then it will be marked as a failure before it can even be attempted).
 * According to his career background, Raikov was also an artist and an athlete.
 * Even though it was stated that Raikov would be brought back into the Soviet Military after he participated in stopping ICBMG's launch during the San Hieronymo Incident, it is unknown whether he actually did return to the Soviet Union, or if he ended up in America in the aftermath, like the other members of Snake's resistance.
 * If Raikov sees you while you're wearing the Mask and the Scientist uniform, he will get very close and say "How beautiful". Then, the alarm will sound.