RUSSIAN NON-PROLIFERATION OFFICIAL DENIES NUCLEAR SMUGGLING FROM RUSSIA.

The chief of the Directorate for Control of Arms Trade and Nuclear Proliferation of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), Lt. General Gennady Evstafiev, said that Western accusations about contraband of fissionable materials from Russia, particularly to Germany, are "fabrications" intended to squeeze Russia out of the competition for nuclear fuel markets. Evstafiev praised the CIA for a professional and fair attitude toward Russia in this matter. He defended the Russian-Iranian nuclear deal on the grounds that his agency was guaranteeing observance of non-proliferation obligations. Finally, Evstafiev backed the Nunn-Lugar program of U.S. financial support for disposing of nuclear warheads from treaty-limited Russian missiles, and said that Congress’ recent decision to freeze this program might be more dangerous to American interests than to Russian ones. (6)

Chernomyrdin Not Shopping For Canadian Grain