Russian Charged with Passing Bulava Missile Secrets

MOSCOW, May 14 (RIA Novosti)

An employee at a Russian defense firm in the Urals region has been accused of passing secrets on the Bulava intercontinental missile to a foreign intelligence service, the Kommersant daily reported on Monday.

The secrets concern the missile’s guidance and control system, the paper said citing a law enforcement source.

"There is conclusive evidence of his guilt,” the source said, adding however that the details of the case have not been disclosed because it involves state secrets.

Experts suggest the company in question could be the Yekaterinburg-based Avtomatika Science and Production Association, which has been developing the missile’s control and guidance system.

The man is due to go on trial at the Sverdlovsk Region Court, which will take place behind closed doors due to the sensitive nature of the case.

The Bulava (SS-NX-30) SLBM, developed by the Moscow Institute of Thermal Technology (since 1998), carries up to 10 MIRV warheads and has a range of over 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles). The three-stage ballistic missile is designed for deployment on Borey-class nuclear submarines.