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Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War!
Study says Russian merchant ships spy on U.S.
By Bill Gertz
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Secret State Department and U.S. Coast Guard programs to monitor Russian
merchant vessels have concluded that Moscow is continuing to use its
commercial fleet to spy on sensitive U.S. defense facilities, including
nuclear submarines. Top Stories
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The programs, however, were undercut by an agreement signed June 20 by
Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta that critics say will make it
easier for Russian ships to spy on sensitive U.S. Navy facilities, especially
in the Puget Sound area of Washington state.
The maritime agreement, according to a Transportation Department
statement, will "improve access by Russian merchant vessels to U.S. ports."
The agreement requires Russian merchant ships to provide 72 hours
advance notice of arrival at several U.S. ports with sensitive military
bases. But the agreement excludes the Seattle area, where U.S. nuclear
submarines are based at Bangor, Wash., on Puget Sound.
Spokesmen for the Transportation Department's Maritime Administration
refused to explain why the agreement does not include a requirement for
security notifications of Russian ship arrivals into Puget Sound.
A Pentagon official said the agreement "shifted Puget Sound into an open
port" from one that had been restricted for Russian merchant ships based on
their intelligence-gathering activity.
The official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said an internal
U.S. government "memorandum of understanding" among the Coast Guard, Pentagon
and State Department still classifies the Puget Sound area as restricted for
Russian ships because of sensitive Navy facilities.
"If it turns out we don't get 72-hour notice, it's a problem," the
official said.
A classified Coast Guard intelligence program to monitor Russian
merchant ships entering the Pacific Northwest was started in February to
monitor the movements of Russian ships to determine whether they followed
rules requiring advance notification of their arrival.
The program began with the delivery of a Jan. 31 diplomatic protest note
to the Russian Embassy in Washington. The note acknowledged that the Russian
government objected to the advance notification requirement "at certain U.S.
ports. However, in this regard, we remain concerned about continued patterns
of unacceptable activity by Russian vessels bound to or from U.S. ports."
The note, labeled "secret," also said that unless the spying activity is
halted, "the United States may find it necessary to take appropriate national
security measures to prevent such activities," including controlling the
movement of Russian ships.
The note also said that U.S. government intended to conclude the
commercial maritime agreement, which Mr. Mineta signed in Moscow on June 20.
The Coast Guard program followed an earlier State Department program
that said Russian "intelligence collection continues" aboard Russian merchant
ships, according to classified documents obtained by The Washington Times.
One document stated that the State Department monitoring program
provided "confirmation of ongoing hostile intel collection by Russian
merchant vessels."
The document said that it is unknown whether Kremlin intelligence
"directed" the spying or was "unsolicited" activity by government-linked
commercial firms that run the merchant fleet.
The Puget Sound intelligence activities by Russian merchant ships were
revealed in a 1997 incident.
The Russian merchant ship Kapitan Man was caught spying on a U.S.
nuclear missile submarine in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, north of Puget
Sound, in April 1997.
Someone on the Kapitan Man fired a laser at a Canadian surveillance
helicopter carrying a U.S. Navy intelligence officer who was photographing
the ship. The officer and the Canadian helicopter pilot suffered permanent
eye damage as a result.
Documents obtained by The Times reveal that the Pentagon, State
Department and Transportation Department signed an agreement in January
outlining what it called a yearlong Russian "special interest vessel"
monitoring program.
The program is aimed at making sure "no Russian-flagged vessels arrive"
in Puget Sound ports "without the 72-hour ."
The program listed the ports of Seattle, Tacoma, Everett, Bellingham,
Ferndale, Olympia, Anacortes and Port Angeles.
Under the program, the Coast Guard will block any Russian ship from
entering Puget Sound if it "is found to be engaging in any anomalous
activity," such as intelligence gathering.
Intelligence officials said Russian merchant ships are spying on nuclear
submarines based in Puget Sound and frequently time their arrivals and
departures in the region with the movements of U.S. Navy submarines.
The yearlong surveillance program followed a survey last year that found
only 25 percent of the Russian merchant ships entering the port provided the
proper advance notification.
The State Department survey from January to June revealed that of the 44
arriving Russian ships, only 14 provided the required 72 hours' notice.
Of the 14 that provided proper notification, 11 were fishing ships that
arrived in one group.
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