Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Russian Insider Accused of Bulava Missile Information Transfer

Russian Insider Accused of Bulava Missile Information Transfer

May 14, 2012

Sensitive information related to Russia's Bulava submarine-launched ballistic missile might have fallen into another government's hands with help from a member of a group in the city of Yekaterinburg, the Russian newspaper Kommersant reported on Monday (see GSN, May 14).

The breach might have originated at Avtomatika, a firm engaged in planning of Bulava flight management and command components, according to Russian defense sector sources. The company is represented at every trial launch of the weapon, the newspaper reported.

Judicial proceedings are expected to unfold in the near future outside public view, police insiders said.

"The prosecution has a lot of corroborative evidence against the suspect. Considering what is at stake, however, no exact information is available," one insider said. "It is only known that the man handed over some information on the missile's controls to a foreign secret service. Nothing is said about what exactly information changed hands or what foreign country is involved."

The Bulava is to be carried by new Borei-class submarines and have the capacity to be loaded with 10 warheads and fly roughly 5,000 miles. It is expected to be placed into active service this year, according to previous reports (Tatiana Drogayeva, Kommersant, May 14).

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