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ARMENIAN NUCLEAR SMUGGLER READY TO NAME SUPPLIERS TO COMMUTE SENTENCE
news.am
Nov 9 2010
Armenia
One of the arrested Armenian citizens detained in Georgia for uranium
smuggling expressed readiness to name suppliers and producers of the
material if sentence is commuted, Russian Kommersant newspaper writes
refrying to its sources. "However, Tbilisi is confident that smuggled
uranium was supplied from Russia," the newspaper says.
It is yet unclear whether Georgian law enforcers agreed to the deal.
Representative of Georgian Internal Ministry Shota Utiashvili stated
that they know suppliers, though "original source" has not been found
yet. He expressed confidence that uranium was produced in Russia.
However, the experts consider that Russian origin of uranium is
not obvious. Anatoliy Dyakov, Director of the Center on Disarmament,
Energy, and Ecology, told the newspaper that taking into account level
of enrichment, uranium could be used in testing reactors located in
one of the former USSR institutes.
It is not the first attempt to sell uranium in Georgia. In 2006
Georgian special services arrested RF citizen Oleg Khinchagov who had
smuggled 100 grams of 95% enriched uranium from Vladikavkaz to hand
it to the alleged buyer in Tbilisi. He was sentenced to 10 years'
imprisonment.
As NEWS.am reported earlier, two Armenian citizens tried to sell
highly enriched uranium to people who as they thought were terrorists.
This information was disclosed today.
It became known that Armenian citizens - businessman Smbat Tonoyan
and physicist Hrant Ohanyan were implicated in smuggling case and
pleaded guilty. They managed to transport from Yerevan to Tbilisi
18 grams of enriched uranium in a lead-lined cigarette box. Such
quantity is not enough to make a bomb. Smugglers were confident they
were dealing with Islamist extremist organization but in fact the
"buyers" were employees of Georgian special services.
From: A. Papazian
news.am
Nov 9 2010
Armenia
One of the arrested Armenian citizens detained in Georgia for uranium
smuggling expressed readiness to name suppliers and producers of the
material if sentence is commuted, Russian Kommersant newspaper writes
refrying to its sources. "However, Tbilisi is confident that smuggled
uranium was supplied from Russia," the newspaper says.
It is yet unclear whether Georgian law enforcers agreed to the deal.
Representative of Georgian Internal Ministry Shota Utiashvili stated
that they know suppliers, though "original source" has not been found
yet. He expressed confidence that uranium was produced in Russia.
However, the experts consider that Russian origin of uranium is
not obvious. Anatoliy Dyakov, Director of the Center on Disarmament,
Energy, and Ecology, told the newspaper that taking into account level
of enrichment, uranium could be used in testing reactors located in
one of the former USSR institutes.
It is not the first attempt to sell uranium in Georgia. In 2006
Georgian special services arrested RF citizen Oleg Khinchagov who had
smuggled 100 grams of 95% enriched uranium from Vladikavkaz to hand
it to the alleged buyer in Tbilisi. He was sentenced to 10 years'
imprisonment.
As NEWS.am reported earlier, two Armenian citizens tried to sell
highly enriched uranium to people who as they thought were terrorists.
This information was disclosed today.
It became known that Armenian citizens - businessman Smbat Tonoyan
and physicist Hrant Ohanyan were implicated in smuggling case and
pleaded guilty. They managed to transport from Yerevan to Tbilisi
18 grams of enriched uranium in a lead-lined cigarette box. Such
quantity is not enough to make a bomb. Smugglers were confident they
were dealing with Islamist extremist organization but in fact the
"buyers" were employees of Georgian special services.
From: A. Papazian