Kazakhstan protected from illegal transportation of WMDs

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Nuclear weapons or its various components will not be transported through Kazakhstan’s territory. The country has effective security measures, Tengrinews correspondent reports citing the National Security Committee, who answered a question on whether such a possibility existed in the context of the terrorist organization "Islamic state."

"The current system of preventive measures in the country does not allow uncontrolled access of radioactive materials and their components onto the territory of Kazakhstan," the Committee said.

The commentary follows a statement made by the head of the Anti-Terrorism Center of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS ATC), Russian Colonel General of Police Andrey Novikov. He declared that Kazakhstan, along with other Central Asian countries, may be “used for transit of nuclear and other hazardous materials, as well as technologies and equipment related to weapons of mass destruction".

A week later an expert in terrorism and conflict studies Dr. Tatyana Dronzina said that there was no definite way to say the terrorists could not actually develop nuclear weapons. However, she said transportation of nuclear weapons through Kazakhstan by the Islamic State was unlikely.

Nuclear weapons or its various components will not be transported through Kazakhstan’s territory. The country has effective security measures, Tengrinews correspondent reports citing the National Security Committee, who answered a question on whether such a possibility existed in the context of the terrorist organization "Islamic state."

"The current system of preventive measures in the country does not allow uncontrolled access of radioactive materials and their components onto the territory of Kazakhstan," the Committee said.

The commentary follows a statement made by the head of the Anti-Terrorism Center of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS ATC), Russian Colonel General of Police Andrey Novikov. He declared that Kazakhstan, along with other Central Asian countries, may be “used for transit of nuclear and other hazardous materials, as well as technologies and equipment related to weapons of mass destruction".

A week later an expert in terrorism and conflict studies Dr. Tatyana Dronzina said that there was no definite way to say the terrorists could not actually develop nuclear weapons. However, she said transportation of nuclear weapons through Kazakhstan by the Islamic State was unlikely.

The National Security Committee said that Novikov’s words should be viewed in the contexts of the scenarios developed by the countries of the post soviet space for a variety of negative developments.

"These include movements of radioactive materials components by hypothetical diversionary-terrorist groups through the territory of Belarus and Russian with an aim of using them in a terrorist act on the territory of Kazakhstan. During an exercise, competent public authorities of CIS member-states developed algorithms of joint investigative work and control of transportation of dangerous cargos,” the Committee said.

Kazakhstan's National Security Committee concluded that there were "no direct threat of the territory of Kazakhstan being used for illegal transit of nuclear and other hazardous materials, or technologies and equipment for production of WMDs”.

Reporting by Vladimir Prokopenko, writing by Dinara Urazova

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