Holy place...

On page 5 of this issue there is a long interview with physicist Valentin Danilov, who has just been released from prison. But the organs are still “vigilant”. “Echo of Moscow” ( echo.msk.ru/news/1005716-echo.html ) reports on a new trial of “spy” scientists.

In the summer of 2012, the St. Petersburg City Court sentenced two employees of the Baltic State Technical University. Ustinov “Voenmech” Evgeny Afanasyev and Svyatoslav Bobyshev to 12.5 and 12 years in a maximum security colony, respectively, for transferring secret information about the “Bulava” missile to China (interestingly, are there any other secrets in the case of the “Bulava” that has bothered everyone’s eyes and ears? ! —Ed . ). The scientists were found guilty of treason. According to investigators, in 2009 teachers received $7,000 for the information they provided (there are no words, they don’t know how to bargain at all! Or do our valiant counterintelligence officers value state secrets so cheaply? - Ed . ). In March 2010, the professors were arrested. The university staff were going to give a series of lectures in Harbin (the trip to which, according to them, was agreed with the special mission), and the topics were approved in advance by the special services. There was no talk of transmitting data that could now supposedly help detect Russian submarines. Afanasiev also said that the money was received for teaching materials that remained at Harbin University. The court, however, accepted the guilty verdict. After this, the convicts filed a complaint with the Supreme Court. However, the criminal board, headed by presiding judge Alexei Shurygin, came to the conclusion that the scientists’ guilt was fully proven, and the verdict came into force.

Naturally, the Public Committee in Defense of Scientists recognized Evgeny Afanasyev and Svyatoslav Bobyshev as “victims of spy mania” back in 2010.