Estonia receives weapons detection devices

TALLINN (BNS) - A delegation of officials from different U.S. agencies
arrived in Estonia on May 22 to discuss issues related to the ban on
trading in weapons of mass destruction and hand over equipment meant to
raise Estonia's capability to detect such attempts.

The officials from the FBI, the U.S. customs, the Department of Defense
and the State Department brought some $30,000-$40,000 worth of
different equipment to Estonia for detecting weapons of mass
destruction and radioactive substances, Estonian Interior Ministry
Adviser Jaanus Rahumagi said.

For instance, the Estonian customs will get from the Americans 10
portable radiation detectors only recently introduced by the U.S.
customs with a total value of $15,000.

"The small device, carried on the belt, reacts to radiation with a beep
or vibration," a representative said. The new devices will be used
mostly in Estonian ports where there is no permanent radiation
monitoring equipment.

Rahumagi said that on the one hand the U.S. assistance comprises
individual training for Estonian police, border and customs officials
in charge of fighting against illegal trade, and of arrangement of
crisis management and coordination schooling on the other.

The training programs mostly are about supervision over strategic
goods, use of hi-tech equipment in detecting weapons of mass
destruction, investigation procedure and cooperation between different
departments.

During a meeting between Estonian Interior Ministry officials and the
U.S. delegation on May 22, also the main priorities for the future were
defined, Rahumagi said.

No weapons of mass destruction or their components have been discovered
in Estonia, but officials here have on numerous occasions found
radioactive objects posing an environmental hazard in shipments of
scrap metal from Russia and Kazakhstan.

Apart from a meeting with the Estonian interior minister, the U.S.
officials will meet here with the ministers of defense, finance,
foreign affairs and justice as well as with the heads of the border
guard, police, rescue and customs departments.

At the meetings issues related to the treaty on the prevention of
proliferation of weapons of mass destruction will be dealt with along
with U.S. programs for technical equipment supply and training for the
Baltic customs, border and police authorities.

Later in the week the delegation was to visit border and customs
checkpoints at Tallinn's Muuga port and in the northeastern border city
of Narva.