Radiation rockets on sale to ‘terrorists’ - (ex-USSR deadly weapons on black market)

TIMES ONLINE.COM ^ | may 8, 2005 | Brian Johnson Thomas and Mark Franchetti, Moldovan frontier

[CHARLITE]

THREE radioactive rockets capable of contaminating a city centre were offered for sale last week to a Sunday Times reporter posing as a middleman for Islamic terrorists.

The Alazan rockets, which have a range of eight miles, were among 50,000 tons of weapons left behind at an arms dump in the breakaway eastern European republic of Transdniester when the Russian army withdrew after the cold war.

They were offered to the reporter for $500,000 (£263,000) after he approached a senior officer in Transdniester’s secret police, claiming to represent a militant group in Algeria. The officer contacted a local arms dealer who arranged meetings with the reporter on a bridge in Transdniester and later at a hotel in neighbouring Moldova.

At their first meeting two months ago, the dealer said the price of a single rocket would be $200,000. The rocket could be independently inspected with a Geiger counter to verify that its warhead contained radioactive strontium and caesium, he said.

Last month the reporter was told that he would have to transfer $2,000 to a bank account in Cyprus before the inspection. He would then pay $8,000 for forged documentation that would enable the rocket to be smuggled across Transdniester’s border with Ukraine. It could be collected at an airfield in southwestern Ukraine once the rest of the asking price had been handed over.

Last week the dealer said that the terms had changed. “My people want to sell three Alazans for a total sum of $500,000,” he said.

According to the dealer, the rockets would be moved to Ukraine tomorrow if the terms were accepted. The Sunday Times withdrew from the negotiations once the availability of the weapons had been confirmed.

Experts said the Alazan rockets, which were originally intended for use in Soviet weather experiments, could spread radiation for more than 20 miles from their point of impact. Few people would die, they said, but the contamination would cause widespread fear and disruption. Large areas would have to be evacuated for a costly clean-up operation.

“The psychological impact would be devastating and the economic damage would run into millions of pounds, “ said Andy Oppenheimer, a consultant to Jane’s Information Group. “The Alazan would be especially attractive for terrorists seeking to strike a high security target.”

United Nations and regional officials are pressing for tighter security at the arms dump in Transdniester

[Cornpone]

"The Sunday Times withdrew from the negotiations once the availability of the weapons had been confirmed."

And pray tell how availability was confirmed? I can say anything...that doesn't mean I can deliver...

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

President Bush ought to be demanding that Putin help us out with this crap rather than listenening to him bitching about our attempts to democratize the middle east.

[CHARLITE]

"President Bush ought to be demanding that Putin help us out with this crap rather than listenening to him bitching about our attempts to democratize the middle east."

Tremendous comment. Very well said! You're right. I approve!

Char :)

[msf92497]

Sounds like poopoo to me.

[Cvengr]

No matter how fast I drive I just can't get away from them,....they've must've locked on to me!!!!!

[Andy from Beaverton]

Name for me the countries that recognize Transdniester as an independent country and not part of Maldova???

This story has been active for two years now: Transdniester: Missing Missiles Raising Fears Of 'Dirty Bombs' For Sale

[endthematrix]

Dirty Bomb Rockets Vanish (Dec. 7, 2003)

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1035470/posts

"Military records show that at least 38 Alazan warheads were modified to carry radioactive material, effectively creating the world's first surface-to-surface dirty bomb.

The warheads are not known to have been used. But now, according to experts and officials, they have disappeared."

[Ramonchito]

The regulation of the sale of sophisticated military hardware to terrorist will take time. The biggest headache for government officials today is the antiwar movement. It is the antiwar movement that is stopping the Europeans from building nuclear weapons. This stance of the antiwar movement in Europe is an invitation for invasion. As President Bush said its military moves is to prevent war. You don't abolish war by abolishing armies or effective weapons of war. All of these are needed to defend a nation's sovereignty against aggression.

Sometimes it will take wars to enforce morality among the nations. But wars are definitely taboo on the agenda of the antiwar movement. All wars are evil, even if fought for the purpose of enforcing morality among the nations.

[aculeus]

BTTT