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Russia's "Lost" Luggage Could Be Deadly
by Eric Margolis
November 1, 1998
Call it the ultimate missing luggage story.
Last year, Gen. Alexander Lebed, Russia's former National Security Advisor, claimed more than 100 suitcase-sized nuclear weapons had `disappeared.' Another senior Russian security official, Alexei Yablokov, backed Lebed's allegations.
Lebed, now a presidential candidate, asserted Russia's military had lost track of the portable nuclear weapons, each of which can produce a 1 kiloton explosion, equivalent to 1,000 tons of TNT. A single suitcase nuke, placed in an urban area, could kill up to 100,000 people and cause enormous physical damage.
Russian security officials scoffed at Lebed's claims, blaming poor record keeping rather than theft or diversion. US officials claimed Libya, Iraq and Iran were the real nuclear danger, not mini-nukes. In fact, these nations pose a potential threat only to Israel. By contrast, Russia's missing nukes are a very real menace to US security.
Two months ago, the highest ranking officer ever to defect from GRU, Russia's military intelligence service, testified in closed hearings before Congress. The former GRU colonel, who defected in 1992, said he had personally identified locations in the US for suitcase nuclear devices that would be used in case of war.
Russia's "Lost" Luggage Could Be Deadly
by Eric Margolis
November 1, 1998
Call it the ultimate missing luggage story.
Last year, Gen. Alexander Lebed, Russia's former National Security Advisor, claimed more than 100 suitcase-sized nuclear weapons had `disappeared.' Another senior Russian security official, Alexei Yablokov, backed Lebed's allegations.
Lebed, now a presidential candidate, asserted Russia's military had lost track of the portable nuclear weapons, each of which can produce a 1 kiloton explosion, equivalent to 1,000 tons of TNT. A single suitcase nuke, placed in an urban area, could kill up to 100,000 people and cause enormous physical damage.
Russian security officials scoffed at Lebed's claims, blaming poor record keeping rather than theft or diversion. US officials claimed Libya, Iraq and Iran were the real nuclear danger, not mini-nukes. In fact, these nations pose a potential threat only to Israel. By contrast, Russia's missing nukes are a very real menace to US security.
Two months ago, the highest ranking officer ever to defect from GRU, Russia's military intelligence service, testified in closed hearings before Congress. The former GRU colonel, who defected in 1992, said he had personally identified locations in the US for suitcase nuclear devices that would be used in case of war.
yup.
