PRAGUE - It is a thin, one-meter-long rocket,
the intended function of which was to spread chemicals
on storm clouds to prevent hail over the Soviet Union.
Instead, the only thing the Alazan rocket spread
successfully was fear. The missile, initially part of a
failed Soviet experiment in weather control, was later
used for military purposes in the early 1990s in various
conflicts in the former Soviet region.
Now,
there are suspicions that the Alazan rockets could have
been outfitted with warheads containing radioactive
waste and turned into what are known as "dirty bombs".
Western media reported this week that dozens of such
rockets appear to have gone missing in Moldova's
breakaway region of Transdniester.
The media
reports quote documents apparently acquired by Oazu
Nantoi, a former Moldovan government official and
political analyst who says he is in possession of
Transdniestrian military documents, dated 1994, that
speak about the existence of 38 radioactive warheads for
Alazan missiles, of which 24 had allegedly been attached
to rockets.
Nantoi said it is possible such
dirty-bomb-type missiles could end up in the hands of
international terrorist groups, since Transdniester is
notorious for selling weapons from former Soviet
arsenals on its territory. "Based on the documents we
have regarding the radiation dose and the pollution, it
is obvious that these missiles represent a real danger.
And if we take into account that the so-called dirty
bombs have become 'fashionable', at least according to
media reports, we cannot rule out that these missiles
could also end up in the hands of terrorist groups," he
said. "Transdniester is renowned for the fact that here
you can buy almost any type of weapon and ammunition
that belonged to the former [Soviet] 14th Army
[stationed in the region]."
Nantoi said the
documents were obtained in 2001 by the Institute for
Policy Studies, the Chisinau-based non-governmental
organization he heads. He said the documents reveal that
personnel who worked with the radioactive warheads were
exposed to high doses of radiation and that their
uniforms had to be burned and buried. Nantoi said the
last known location of the missiles is believed to have
been a military airfield near Tiraspol, the capital of
the separatist region, adding that it is not known what
happened to the rockets after 2001.
Both
separatist officials and commanders of the 2,500 Russian
troops stationed in Transdniester vehemently deny
reports about the existence of the modified Alazan
missiles. However, Transdniestrian authorities have
repeatedly refused to allow international inspections at
the huge military depots on their territory.
Klaus Neukirch, the spokesman for the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's
mission in Chisinau, said the OSCE is aware of the
reports and is investigating them, but he would make no
further comment. The United States is also investigating
the reports, said Richard Boucher, a spokesman for the
US State Department, although he told the press on
Tuesday that the US cannot yet confirm them.
"It's not something that we can substantiate.
We've done some looking into it, [but] at this point we
don't have information that would substantiate those
reports," Boucher said. "We can't confirm the existence
of this material or the reported movements, but we'll
continue to look into these reports and see if we can
track down any of the pieces that were there."
Reports about the possible involvement of
Transdniester in the production of dirty bombs once
again highlight the separatists' longtime involvement in
money-laundering and the manufacturing and smuggling of
weapons, as well as trafficking in human beings and
drugs.
Secessionists in Russian-speaking
Transdniester maintain control over the enclave's
borders with Ukraine, across which most of the smuggling
takes place. The region's leader, Igor Smirnov, and his
son Vladimir are believed to have almost exclusive
control over the lucrative criminal activities in the
area.
The dispute between Transdniester and the
rest of Moldova remains unresolved. Decade-long talks
supervised by the OSCE, Russia and Ukraine have failed
repeatedly, attracting criticism that Russia is
unofficially supporting the separatists, although Moscow
has not formally recognized Transdniester's existence.
The quagmire remains as deep as ever after
Moldova last month turned down a Russian plan proposing
de facto independence for Transdniester and a long-term
extension of the presence of Russian forces. Analysts
have said a fair and durable settlement of the dispute
is possible only with greater involvement of the
international community.
Tamara Makarenko, an
expert on terrorism at the British-based Center for the
Study of Terrorism and Political Violence, said failure
to bring Transdniester's arms activities under control
could have grave consequences. "Without the effective
use of the rule of law and the establishment of law and
order, then you're talking about an area that would
increasingly pose a risk to the surrounding region,"
Makarenko said. "Therefore, I think it's up to a number
of international parties and international actors,
whether they are states or international organizations
such as the UN, to assert some sort of pressure to
ensure that, essentially, speaking rhetorically,
Transdniester pulls its socks up."
Makarenko
said that, in the environment post-September 11, 2001,
Western politicians and analysts are increasingly aware
of Transdniester as a hub for weapons smuggling. And she
expressed surprise that the international community has
not taken more concrete steps to stabilize the region.
"We were all concerned about Pankisi Gorge, for
example, right after September 11, just because there
was evidence that terrorist groups used it directly as a
training ground. Although we are concerned about
training grounds, my question remains, why aren't we
concerned about areas that are used as smuggling havens?
Because from those areas all types of illicit actors -
whether that's organized crime, corrupt political actors
or terrorist groups, of course - benefit from the
operation in those regions," Makarenko said. "Therefore,
I think that the international community once and for
all has to begin focusing on the area and exerting
pressure on the region to help clean it up."
Recently, however, hope has been renewed of
greater Western involvement in resolving the Moldovan
conflict. This month US Secretary of State Colin Powell
called for the establishment of an international
peacekeeping force for Moldova. Meanwhile, the European
Union has promised by May an action plan for greater
European integration of Moldova.
