A shipment of missile components bound for Ukraine and intercepted by Finnish customs originated in Vietnam, reports the daily Helsingin Sanomat. The paper wrote Friday that in June Finnish customs officers blocked the large consignment because it lacked the permits required to transit through Finland.
According to Helsingin Sanomat, the impounded shipment of components for what appears to be a missile guidance system originated in Vietnam and was bound for Ukraine.
Customs officials are awaiting confirmation from Finland’s defence forces on what kind of missile system parts are being delivered and at the same time trying to determine who will be on the receiving end in Ukraine.
They are also investigating whether or not the parts had been serviced in Vietnam as well as the reason why Finland was listed as a transit point on the bill of lading.
Customs officials will also be turning their attention to the airline that transported the components to discover what role it played in the entire scenario. At this point however the airline itself is not suspected of violating export regulations.
One of the largest arms seizures
Finnish Customs say the shipment in question is one of the largest consignments of arms they have ever intercepted. Over the years they have seized about a dozen or so loads of suspected military hardware, some of it bound for countries facing arms embargoes.
Just last year customs officers were engaged in a cross-border investigation into an apparent attempt to smuggle tank parts into war-torn Syria through Finland, in spite of an international arms embargo.
Daily reports Ukraine missile shipment from Vietnam | Yle Uutiset | yle.fi
@vostok @senheiser
Now you Russians understand why we say vietnam is "a country with low credit"?
According to Helsingin Sanomat, the impounded shipment of components for what appears to be a missile guidance system originated in Vietnam and was bound for Ukraine.
Customs officials are awaiting confirmation from Finland’s defence forces on what kind of missile system parts are being delivered and at the same time trying to determine who will be on the receiving end in Ukraine.
They are also investigating whether or not the parts had been serviced in Vietnam as well as the reason why Finland was listed as a transit point on the bill of lading.
Customs officials will also be turning their attention to the airline that transported the components to discover what role it played in the entire scenario. At this point however the airline itself is not suspected of violating export regulations.
One of the largest arms seizures
Finnish Customs say the shipment in question is one of the largest consignments of arms they have ever intercepted. Over the years they have seized about a dozen or so loads of suspected military hardware, some of it bound for countries facing arms embargoes.
Just last year customs officers were engaged in a cross-border investigation into an apparent attempt to smuggle tank parts into war-torn Syria through Finland, in spite of an international arms embargo.
Daily reports Ukraine missile shipment from Vietnam | Yle Uutiset | yle.fi
@vostok @senheiser
Now you Russians understand why we say vietnam is "a country with low credit"?
