A Ukrainian deputy has divulged open secrets

The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) has accused the head of the parliamentary commission for investigating the supplying of Ukrainian weapons to Georgia Valery Konovalyuk with breaking the law on state secrets.

The SBU thinks that there are signs in the deputy's activities of him violating "the code guaranteeing secrecy in state bodies", ITAR-TASS reports with reference to the security service's press office. And the secret material which has become public has damaged "the national interests of the country". As a result, on 25th January the SBU drew up a report on an administrative infringement of the law and passed the case on to the courts.

In mid-December Konovalyuk's commission published a report on arms supplies to Georgia. According to information contained in the report, President Yushchenko was in total command of these deliveries, with the help of the Ukrainian Security Service which is under his control.

Kyiv officially argues that the weapons were supplied legally. And refutes two further allegations made by Konovalyuk. Firstly, that Georgia obtained them at dumping prices. And secondly, that allegedly only a tenth of the earnings reached the state coffers, while the remainder settled in some people's pockets.

The Ukrainian Security Service has long been accusing this deputy of divulging state secrets. Even though his statements have not contained any secrets. Moscow, for example, knew no less than the Verkhovna Rada commission what Ukraine sold to Georgia and when. For one simple reason: the lion's share of these weapons ended up as spoils of victory in Russian military depots.

On 15th January Russia's President Medvedev issued a decree banning the supply of weapons to Georgia, which provides for economic sanctions against any countries who do this. In response Ukraine obstinately repeated that it has not broken any international rules. And what is more, if Georgia again appeals to Ukraine for weapons, this request will definitely be looked into. On the subject of the imminent and quite realistic disregard for Medvedev's aforementioned decree, State Duma deputy Sergey Markov said:

"Some of the weapons were supplied to Georgia by companies belonging to the Ukrainian military-industrial complex, which entirely depend on their economic ties with Russia for survival," cites news.liga.net. "For a while now it's been time for us to give them an ultimatum: either you are involved in financing and supporting Saakashvili's army, or you work alongside Russia."

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