Bulgaria Part of Russian Massive Arms Smuggling Ring

A ring of Russian military personnel that stole spare parts for antiaircraft and radar systems, including highly classified ones, and sought to sell them in nearby countries, including Bulgaria, has been uncovered, Russian officials announced.

The parts were intercepted before being exported, the customs officials said in a statement.

They said the ring, based in the St. Petersburg area, intended to sell the parts in three former Soviet republics - Belarus, Ukraine and Kazakhstan - as well as Bulgaria.

The officials gave no indication whether they suspected that the parts would then be transferred elsewhere.

The spare parts were for systems that included the S-300, a highly sophisticated weapon that can track aircraft and fire at them from as many as 100 miles away.

International agencies commented that the Russian armed forces have been plagued by corruption, and insider rings that steal and resell military property are common.

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