Rogue Planet

NY jury convicts wealthy arms dealer of conspiracy

By LARRY NEUMEISTER

NEW YORK (AP) — A Manhattan jury has convicted a wealthy arms dealer of conspiring to sell weapons to informants who supposedly were supplying terrorists willing to kill Americans.

U.S. prosecutors said Syrian-born Monzer al-Kassar (MAHN'-zur al-kuh-SAR') and a co-defendant conspired over a four-month period last year to try to sell millions of dollars worth of heavy weaponry to Colombian militants.

The defense said the men were actually sleuthing on behalf of Spanish intelligence operators.

U.S. authorities said al-Kassar was willing to sell surface-to-air missile systems, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, thousands of machine guns and millions of rounds of ammunition to Colombian rebels.

The charges included conspiracy to provide aid and equipment to a terrorist organization and conspiracy to kill United States nationals.

[ap.com]

Russian Arms Exporter Sanctioned Over Iran

By Glenn Kessler
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, October 25, 2008; A12

The State Department has slapped financial sanctions on Russia's state arms exporter for its dealings with Iran, but in an unusual move, it granted the company a partial waiver to permit the sale of nearly two dozen Russian helicopters to Iraq, U.S. officials said yesterday.

The new sanctions -- required by U.S. law to thwart the sale of sensitive technology that could help Iran, North Korea and Syria develop weapons of mass destruction or missile systems -- were also imposed on 12 other companies or organizations based in China, Iran, North Korea, South Korea, Sudan, Syria, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov denounced the sanctions on Russia's Rosoboronexport, and its subsidiaries, as illegal and unjust. The company had been sanctioned by the United States in 2006 but would have come off the list had the State Department determined that it had not made any suspect sales in the past two years.

"These new sanctions were introduced without any international legal foundation whatsoever," Lavrov said in Moscow. "Russia will of course take this into account in practical affairs and relations with the United States, such as in trade and economic and other spheres."

He added that Russia would not change its policies on Iran because of the sanctions. "All our trade and all of our military-technical cooperation with Iran is carried out in strict accordance with current international legal norms," he said. "There can be no other explanation here than the rather arrogant extra-territorial implementation of American laws."

Visiting Bannerman's Island

Jen Carlson

Oct. 14, 2008 -- What's more intriguing than an abandoned island with a rotting castle sitting just north of New York City? Bannerman's Island sits in the Hudson, just about 50 miles north of here, and American Heritage explains "this island fortress was once the private arsenal of the worlds largest arms dealer," Frank "Francis" Bannerman. Living in Brooklyn at the time of the Civil War, he purchased "government surplus equipment at the nearby Brooklyn Navy Yard" for the family business, and eventually Francis Bannerman Sons became the world's largest dealer in military goods, with the weapons exceeding the family's store space in Manhattan (occupying an entire block at 501 Broadway) and three huge Brooklyn warehouses. 

This is where the island comes in! He bought the island [6.5 acres] in December of 1900 for fifteen hundred dollars from a private owner and bought seven acres more of underwater land in front of the island from the state of New York. He ringed the submerged area with sunken canal boats, barges, and railroad floats to form a breakwater. On the island Bannerman built a huge arsenal styled after his idea of a Scottish castle. On a hill in the middle of the island he built a smaller castle as the Bannerman family home. And they lived happily ever after on a "virtual powder keg" (with just a few fatal live ammo accidents)! By the 1960s the castle was decaying, and in 1967 it was sold to New York's Taconic State Park Commission, with all remaining arms and munitions disposed of. Soon after a fire broke out and ruined the decaying structures even more. These days the Hudson River website warns: "Do not attempt to visit...it is a very treacherous combination of buried hazards and dangerous wall conditions." Tod Seelie recently braved the island, however, and came out of it safe and sound, and with these images. 

[gothamist.com]

The Arms Trade Booms Amid Global Economic Woes

Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2008

By Vivienne Walt / Paris

Need to start a war? No problem. While stock markets gyrate and financial institutions (and even whole countries, like Iceland) teeter on bankruptcy, one global industry is still drawing plenty of high-end trades and profits: weapons.

In a Paris courtroom last week, 42 officials went on trial for taking millions in kickbacks and organizing huge arms commissions from the Angolan government during the mid-1990s. In the dock were such big names as Charles Pasqua, a former French Interior Minister; Jean-Christophe Mitterrand, the son of the late French President François Mitterrand; and Russian-Israeli billionaire Arkadi Gaydamak, who is currently a candidate for mayor of Jerusalem. The group is charged with having supplied almost $800 million worth of arms to Angolan President José Eduardo Dos Santos, including 12 helicopters, 6 naval vessels, 150,000 shells and 170,000 land mines.

The hardware came from the huge stockpiles of Soviet weapons left behind when the Soviet Union collapsed, and Dos Santos wanted it in order to crush the U.S.-backed Unita rebels during Angola's devastating civil war. (Dos Santos, who is believed to have made millions off the trades, won the war and is still in power.) The French businessman Pierre Falcone allegedly plied Angolan officials with tens of millions of dollars — some of it stuffed in suitcases — and deposited other sums of money in offshore accounts. Actor Nicolas Cage's character in the 2005 movie Lord of War was partly modeled on the alleged actions of Gaydamak, although the character may also have been inspired by the powerful Russian arms trader Viktor Bout, who is currently in a Thai jail awaiting the outcome of a hearing on a U.S. extradition request.

US circles hijacked ship with Sudan-bound weapons

By MOHAMED OLAD HASSAN and BARBARA SURK, Associated Press Writers

U.S. warships and helicopters on Monday surrounded a hijacked cargo ship loaded with Sudan-bound tanks and other arms to keep the weapons from falling "into the wrong hands," an American Navy spokesman said.

The shipment of 33 Russian-designed tanks, rifles and ammunition on the Ukrainian-operated Faina was headed for Sudan — not Kenya as previously claimed by Kenyan officials, said Lt. Nathan Christensen, a deputy spokesman for the U.S. Navy's Bahrain-based 5th Fleet.

The pirates who seized the ship are demanding a $20 million ransom.

Christensen said an unspecified number of destroyers and cruisers have joined the San Diego-based USS destroyer Howard within a 10-mile radius of the Faina.

"The safety of the ship's crew and cargo is a paramount concern to us," Christensen said, adding additional warships and helicopters were deployed to prevent the weapons from falling "into the wrong hands."

The U.S. fears the armaments onboard the Ukrainian vessel may end up with al-Qaida-linked Islamic insurgents who have been fighting the shaky U.N.-backed Somali transitional government since late 2006.

"We maintain a vigilant watch over the ship and we will remain on station while negotiations between the pirates and the shipping company are going on," Christensen told The Associated Press.

Pirates seized the Faina's Ukrainian, Russian and Latvian crew off Somalia's lawless coast on Thursday as it headed to Kenya and anchored the vessel off Somalia's coast near the central town of Hobyo. One of the 21 crew members has died.

U.S. Policy Is Fuzzy on Arms Purchases From Former Warsaw Pact Nations

By Walter Pincus
Monday, September 29, 2008; A17

What is the U.S. policy about supplying weapons to Afghanistan that come from Russia and former Warsaw Pact countries? Can the U.S. military deal directly with foreign countries that have these weapons and the ammunition that goes with them? Or must they go through private contractors, who act as middlemen and profit from such transactions?

Since 2003, the U.S. military has purchased, through private contractors, billions of dollars worth of former Warsaw Pact arms and ammunition for Iraq and Afghan security forces, rather than buying them directly or seeking donations of such equipment from countries that are coalition members. In June, Congress was told by an Army general that U.S. law and government procurement regulations required using contractors to purchase such ammunition.

Last Tuesday, however, Maj. Gen. Jay Lindell, commander of the Combined Air Power Transition Force in Afghanistan, told Pentagon bloggers during a teleconference that he was outfitting the Afghans with used, Russian-designed Mi-17 helicopters that were donated by the United Arab Emirates and purchased directly from the Czech and Slovak republics. In addition, he said, negotiations are underway to buy new ones from Russia.

He said the Afghans received Russian-made aircraft because "that's what the Afghans know how to fly and maintain so very well." Negotiations with Russia are "happening right now to determine the number of aircraft that we will purchase and the delivery dates," he said.

One Million Weapons to Iraq; Many Go Missing

by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch 
September 22nd, 2008

Clandestine gun suppliers, funded by the U.S. and Iraqi governments, have flooded Iraq with a million weapons since 2003, charges a new Amnesty International investigation. Because of faulty or non-existent government tracking systems, many of those guns have gone missing, and some have turned up in the hands of insurgents. 

Contracts with one of these companies, Taos Industries, account for almost half of the $217 million Baghdad and Washington have officially spent to arm the Iraqi army, police and security forces employed by various Iraqi ministries. 

Taos was founded in 1989 by a former U.S. intelligence official in Madison, Alabama, to traffic Soviet weapons systems after the fall of the Berlin Wall. In October 2006 Taos was sold to a company controlled by the Sultans, a powerful Kuwaiti family that also controls billions of dollars worth of contracts for food supply and heavy equipment deliveries to U.S. bases throughout Iraq. 

Continue reading "One Million Weapons to Iraq; Many Go Missing" »

AMBIKA AHUJA ASSOCIATED PRESS

BANGKOK, THAILAND (AP) - An alleged arms smuggler's extradition hearing to the United States began Monday after a string of delays in the high-profile case because of complications with his defense team in Thailand.

Viktor Bout, dubbed "The Merchant of Death," has been indicted in the U.S. on four terrorism charges. He was arrested in Thailand on March 6.

Though Bout denies any involvement in illicit activities, he is regarded as one of the world's most-wanted arms traffickers and was purportedly the model for the character portrayed by Nicolas Cage in the 2005 movie "Lord of War."

Chained at the ankles, Bout made no comment as he was led into Bangkok's Criminal Court. Monday's hearing was briefly interrupted at the start when defense attorney Preecha Prasertsak petitioned the court to dismiss the case, arguing that the Russian had been illegally detained. After a half-hour adjournment, judges said the complaint would be considered at a later date.

Continue reading "'Merchant of Death' in Thai court" »

Wednesday's Miami Herald article brings to light two recommendations:

1. If you're in the business of circumventing arms trade regulations, don't move to South Florida. There is a lot of not-so-smart competition and/or very smart federal agents in the same place.
2. If you're going to sell 'Russian military helicopters equipped with guns, rockets and bombs' to a country like Zimbabwe, don't name your business 'Russian Aircraft Services LLC'   

South Florida arms-exporting cases

• Airplane parts: In June, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami charged a Broward County man with conspiring to export military aircraft parts to Iran. Traian Bujduveanu, 53, faces up to 20 years in prison and $1 million in fines if convicted of violating the U.S. Arms Export Control Act and the U.S.-Iran trade embargo. He was born in Romania but is a naturalized U.S. citizen who for the past 30 years has lived in Plantation, where he cares for his blind mother, according to his attorney.  Bujduveanu has pleaded not guilty, along with a California man charged with the same counts. Both are scheduled for trial in March.

• Made-in-China munitions: In June, a federal indictment charged a 22-year-old Miami Beach businessman with conspiring to sell Chinese-made ammunitions to Afghanistan security forces.  Efraim Diveroli, president of AEY Inc., allegedly sent 35 shipments worth $10 million overseas and tried to pass them off as Albanian-made. But the munitions were from China, which violated Diveroli's contract with the Pentagon, prosecutors said.  He faces more than 10 years in prison if convicted of intentionally misleading the U.S. government.

• Night-vision goggles: In May, a federal judge in Fort Lauderdale sentenced a woman to 29 months in prison after she pleaded guilty in a plot to send 3,000 U.S.-manufactured military night-vision goggles to Iran.  Shahrazad Mir Gholikhan, 30, later retracted the plea and now is scheduled for trial Oct. 14. She faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.  Her attorney contends Gholikhan thought the deal involved binoculars.

• Russian helicopters: A Hallandale Beach businessman was charged in April with trying to sell 10 Russian military helicopters equipped with guns, rockets and bombs to an undercover federal informant who told the dealer they were destined for Zimbabwe.  Military exports to the African country are banned. Peter Spitz, 70, owner of Russian Aircraft Services LLC, was first contacted last March about a potential helicopter purchase by the informant for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  According to court records, the informant told Spitz he was interested in buying seven MI-24 Russian attack helicopters and three MI-8T Russian military transport helicopters.  

[miamiherald.com]

Amnesty International released an extensive report this week that provides case studies on the effects of variations and loopholes in current global arms legislation.  The report is structured to rally support for the UN Arms Trade Treaty from the 24 abstaining members and the lone holdout in preparation for October's UN General Assembly discussions on Disarmament and Security.

Blood at the Crossroads: Making the Case for a Global Arms Trade Treaty [.pdf]

'Merchant of Death' in Thai court

AMBIKA AHUJA ASSOCIATED PRESS

BANGKOK, THAILAND (AP) - An alleged arms smuggler's extradition hearing to the United States began Monday after a string of delays in the high-profile case because of complications with his defense team in Thailand.

Viktor Bout, dubbed "The Merchant of Death," has been indicted in the U.S. on four terrorism charges. He was arrested in Thailand on March 6.

Though Bout denies any involvement in illicit activities, he is regarded as one of the world's most-wanted arms traffickers and was purportedly the model for the character portrayed by Nicolas Cage in the 2005 movie "Lord of War."

Chained at the ankles, Bout made no comment as he was led into Bangkok's Criminal Court. Monday's hearing was briefly interrupted at the start when defense attorney Preecha Prasertsak petitioned the court to dismiss the case, arguing that the Russian had been illegally detained. After a half-hour adjournment, judges said the complaint would be considered at a later date.

Continue reading "'Merchant of Death' in Thai court" »

Wednesday's Miami Herald article brings to light two recommendations:

1. If you're in the business of circumventing arms trade regulations, don't move to South Florida. There is a lot of not-so-smart competition and/or very smart federal agents in the same place.
2. If you're going to sell 'Russian military helicopters equipped with guns, rockets and bombs' to a country like Zimbabwe, don't name your business 'Russian Aircraft Services LLC'   

South Florida arms-exporting cases

• Airplane parts: In June, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami charged a Broward County man with conspiring to export military aircraft parts to Iran. Traian Bujduveanu, 53, faces up to 20 years in prison and $1 million in fines if convicted of violating the U.S. Arms Export Control Act and the U.S.-Iran trade embargo. He was born in Romania but is a naturalized U.S. citizen who for the past 30 years has lived in Plantation, where he cares for his blind mother, according to his attorney.  Bujduveanu has pleaded not guilty, along with a California man charged with the same counts. Both are scheduled for trial in March.

• Made-in-China munitions: In June, a federal indictment charged a 22-year-old Miami Beach businessman with conspiring to sell Chinese-made ammunitions to Afghanistan security forces.  Efraim Diveroli, president of AEY Inc., allegedly sent 35 shipments worth $10 million overseas and tried to pass them off as Albanian-made. But the munitions were from China, which violated Diveroli's contract with the Pentagon, prosecutors said.  He faces more than 10 years in prison if convicted of intentionally misleading the U.S. government.

• Night-vision goggles: In May, a federal judge in Fort Lauderdale sentenced a woman to 29 months in prison after she pleaded guilty in a plot to send 3,000 U.S.-manufactured military night-vision goggles to Iran.  Shahrazad Mir Gholikhan, 30, later retracted the plea and now is scheduled for trial Oct. 14. She faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.  Her attorney contends Gholikhan thought the deal involved binoculars.

• Russian helicopters: A Hallandale Beach businessman was charged in April with trying to sell 10 Russian military helicopters equipped with guns, rockets and bombs to an undercover federal informant who told the dealer they were destined for Zimbabwe.  Military exports to the African country are banned. Peter Spitz, 70, owner of Russian Aircraft Services LLC, was first contacted last March about a potential helicopter purchase by the informant for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  According to court records, the informant told Spitz he was interested in buying seven MI-24 Russian attack helicopters and three MI-8T Russian military transport helicopters.  

[miamiherald.com]

Amnesty International released an extensive report this week that provides case studies on the effects of variations and loopholes in current global arms legislation.  The report is structured to rally support for the UN Arms Trade Treaty from the 24 abstaining members and the lone holdout in preparation for October's UN General Assembly discussions on Disarmament and Security.

Blood at the Crossroads: Making the Case for a Global Arms Trade Treaty [.pdf]

Lessons Learned

Wednesday's Miami Herald article brings to light two recommendations:

1. If you're in the business of circumventing arms trade regulations, don't move to South Florida. There is a lot of not-so-smart competition and/or very smart federal agents in the same place.
2. If you're going to sell 'Russian military helicopters equipped with guns, rockets and bombs' to a country like Zimbabwe, don't name your business 'Russian Aircraft Services LLC'   

South Florida arms-exporting cases

• Airplane parts: In June, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami charged a Broward County man with conspiring to export military aircraft parts to Iran. Traian Bujduveanu, 53, faces up to 20 years in prison and $1 million in fines if convicted of violating the U.S. Arms Export Control Act and the U.S.-Iran trade embargo. He was born in Romania but is a naturalized U.S. citizen who for the past 30 years has lived in Plantation, where he cares for his blind mother, according to his attorney.  Bujduveanu has pleaded not guilty, along with a California man charged with the same counts. Both are scheduled for trial in March.

• Made-in-China munitions: In June, a federal indictment charged a 22-year-old Miami Beach businessman with conspiring to sell Chinese-made ammunitions to Afghanistan security forces.  Efraim Diveroli, president of AEY Inc., allegedly sent 35 shipments worth $10 million overseas and tried to pass them off as Albanian-made. But the munitions were from China, which violated Diveroli's contract with the Pentagon, prosecutors said.  He faces more than 10 years in prison if convicted of intentionally misleading the U.S. government.

• Night-vision goggles: In May, a federal judge in Fort Lauderdale sentenced a woman to 29 months in prison after she pleaded guilty in a plot to send 3,000 U.S.-manufactured military night-vision goggles to Iran.  Shahrazad Mir Gholikhan, 30, later retracted the plea and now is scheduled for trial Oct. 14. She faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.  Her attorney contends Gholikhan thought the deal involved binoculars.

• Russian helicopters: A Hallandale Beach businessman was charged in April with trying to sell 10 Russian military helicopters equipped with guns, rockets and bombs to an undercover federal informant who told the dealer they were destined for Zimbabwe.  Military exports to the African country are banned. Peter Spitz, 70, owner of Russian Aircraft Services LLC, was first contacted last March about a potential helicopter purchase by the informant for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  According to court records, the informant told Spitz he was interested in buying seven MI-24 Russian attack helicopters and three MI-8T Russian military transport helicopters.  

[miamiherald.com]

Blood at the Crossroads

Amnesty International released an extensive report this week that provides case studies on the effects of variations and loopholes in current global arms legislation.  The report is structured to rally support for the UN Arms Trade Treaty from the 24 abstaining members and the lone holdout in preparation for October's UN General Assembly discussions on Disarmament and Security.

Blood at the Crossroads: Making the Case for a Global Arms Trade Treaty [.pdf]