Chinese man charged with smuggling military equipment in Russia's Far East

Chinese man charged with smuggling military equipment in Russia's Far East

2011-07-09 00:20:40 GMT+7 (ICT)

CHITA, RUSSIA (BNO NEWS) -- Russian customs authorities on Friday brought charges against a Chinese man accused of attempting to smuggle military equipment in Russia's Far East, RIA Novosti reported.

The Chinese national, whose identity was not revealed, was detained in one of the border checkpoints in the Transbaikal region in July 2010. At the moment of his arrest, he was smuggling spare parts for Russian MiG-29 and Su-27 fighters into China.

Customs officials located six stepping motors, two piston pumps, 54 connectors, an elapsed-time meter and other parts in the trunk of the Chinese man's vehicle, according to customs spokeswoman Yulia Filippova.

"It took experts from the Defense Ministry almost a year to prove that the confiscated equipment is part of assembly kits for MiG-29 and Su-27 fighter jets," added Filippova. "A criminal case has been opened."

This was the second attempt by Chinese nationals to smuggle spare parts for military fighter jets from Russia in the last three years. In 2009, a man was detained at the same border point while trying to smuggle power supply circuits for Su-27s.

"Military-designation products can be taken in and out of the country upon licenses issued by the Russian Service for military-technical cooperation," added the spokeswoman.

The Russian government has previously accused China of manufacturing clones of some of their weaponry, including the Su-27SK fighter jet. Russia said that the copying is a violation of intellectual property agreements.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-07-09