30.09.2017, Russia.
Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) in cooperation with the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs thwarted the activity of weapon-traffickers who smuggled arms from Ukraine, Interfax reports on September 29.
A network of illegal weapon suppliers, traffickers, and dealers, as well as those who were involved in arms manufacturing and enhancement, was uncovered and neutralized. 62 suspects were detained during searches in 21 regions of Russia.
A light machine gun, 11 assault rifles, 10 submachine guns, 38 carbines and rifles, 121 pistols and a revolver, including those with silencers, grenades, components for manufacturing 200 units of firearms, more than 7 thousand rounds of ammunition of various calibers, and more than 18 kg of explosives were seized.
FSB officers also shut down 8 workshops for converting civilian non-lethal weapons into combat weapons.
A significant part of this arsenal was smuggled from Ukraine into the Russian Federation.
After the collapse of the USSR, large arsenals and armories were left on the territory of Ukraine. In 1990s, Ukrainian weapons spread widely throughout the world, supplementing and replenishing the black market.
In 2014, the situation became more complicated, since over the course of the Euromaidan, many armories, police stations, and military bases were looted. Moreover, weapons from the zone of the so-called “anti-terrorist operation” [the way Kiev junta refers to its punitive operation – editor’s note] entered the black market.
According to Ukrainian experts, the Ukrainian population may possess about 20 million firearms, with only 2 million registered. Over the last six months, the Ukrainian authorities confiscated 1,400 small arms, more than 900 explosive devices, and 120,000 cartridges.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
