Russia Considers Clearing Baltic Sea CW Dumps

World War II-era chemical weapons might be moved from the bottom of the Baltic Sea so that a natural gas pipeline can be laid between Russia and Germany, the Baltic News Service reported yesterday (see GSN, Dec. 13, 2005).

A company working for the Russian Emergencies Ministry has asked Finland about permits needed to work in Finnish waters and on Finnish land. No formal application has been submitted, according to the Finnish daily Turun Sanomat.

The pipe is expected to cut through two sites where weapons were dumped in the southern Baltic Sea. Moving the weapons would be a difficult, dangerous process.

“It would come cheaper to map out the route and lay the pipeline so that there would be no need for it to pass over weapons,” said a Finnish Defense Ministry official (Baltic News Service, Jan. 12).

Back to top
About Newswire  |  Contact National Journal  |  Re-Use Guidelines © Copyright 2008 by National Journal Group, Inc. The material in this section is produced independently for NTI by National Journal Group, Inc. Any reproduction or retransmission, in whole or in part, is a violation of federal law and is strictly prohibited without the consent of the National Journal Group, Inc. All rights reserved.