Former Head of Syunik Customs Speaks on Crimean Bridge Incident: "Metallic Parts May Not Have Been Present"

The newspaper "Hraparak" reports: "The Russian Federal Security Service has stated that the truck that exploded at the Crimean Bridge was cleared through customs in Armenia. Eight individuals have been arrested in connection with the incident. Five citizens from Russia, three from Ukraine, and three from Armenia were detained, involved in the preparation of the crime," the service announced on October 12, specifying that the organizers of the explosion are the Main Directorate of Intelligence of Ukraine and its head, Kirill Budanov.

According to the investigation, Ukrainians Mikhail Tsyurkalo, Denis Kovach, and Roman Solomko, Georgian citizens Sandro Inosaridze and Levan, as well as 37-year-old citizen Arthur Terzhanian from both Georgia and Armenia participated in the organization of transporting the cargo from Bulgaria to the port of Poti, and subsequently to Armenia.

"From September 29 to October 3, 2022, the cargo was cleared at the 'Transalliance' terminal in Yerevan according to the EAEU regulations, and document substitutions were made, after which the sender was 'Gu Ar Ji Group' LLC (Armenia, Alaverdi), and the recipient was 'Lider' LLC (Moscow)," reported the Russian special services. Later, on October 4, the cargo crossed the Russo-Georgian border at the Upper Lars checkpoint in a DAF truck registered in Georgia, and on October 6, it was transferred and unloaded at a wholesale warehouse in the Krasnodar region of Armavir.

Following the Russian special services' announcement, the RA Prosecutor's Office stated that the FSB's letter was directed to the investigative department of the NSS for initiating a criminal case and promised to pursue the case's revelation. The State Revenue Committee of Armenia also issued an extensive statement detailing the customs clearance process of the cargo and indicating that no risky elements were detected at the moment of the cargo's exit from Armenia. In other words, the bomb did not enter Armenia via the truck: "All procedures of entry into the Republic of Armenia, customs control, X-ray examination, customs clearance, and documentation were conducted properly and legally, with no risky factors being detected during the X-ray examination conducted at the entry and exit times of the cargo. All documents validating the aforementioned facts, as well as photos of the X-ray examination and recorded movements by surveillance cameras in customs control zones, have been preserved."

In connection with the topic, we spoke with the former head of the Syunik regional customs, Ashot Minasian (Ashot Iron). We asked him if it was possible for a cargo to be cleared, contain explosives, and not be detected. He responded: "I don’t know how that is possible. It depends on how the customs clearance was performed. If X-ray cameras were used, then the X-ray cameras show what is inside and what is not. It is possible that there were no metallic parts inside, it could have been without metallic parts, anything is possible. They could have viewed it as a homogenous mass. I cannot say what was in the overall cargo, it could have been something like a plasticine mass," Minasian said.

This implies that X-ray devices only detect metals? "No, everything is visible; X-ray equipment sees everything." According to Minasian, it is essential to be attentive during customs clearance: "If I’m not mistaken, customs bodies currently have the ability to see the cargo until the end. Even in our time, that issue was raised; now chips are being implemented that are supposed to show what is in the cargo until the end; it is encoded, and the list of goods should be visible. You cannot only blame the customs officer; you should blame the cargo owner... the owner of the cargo is unknown because a name change has been made. So, who do you blame?"

There are reports that after this incident, Armenian cargoes have been subject to stricter checks at Upper Lars, creating additional problems for Armenian exporters. We asked Minasian how this incident could affect the verification process of Armenian cargoes at Upper Lars. "It depends on how Russia looks at everything, considering what has happened and how it has happened. There is definitely no point in claiming that Russia has ill feelings towards Armenia or that they will tell us to leave the customs zone, or we will leave; such a thing cannot happen because we are neither the first country nor the last country that might encounter something like this. It depends on how our customs leaders, ultimately, the head of the SRC, will perceive it... Perhaps this is a misunderstanding, and our people are not to blame," Minasian concluded.

Note: We received news from the Lars checkpoint yesterday that trucks transporting goods from Armenia are undergoing thorough inspections, including X-ray examinations, and a significant queue has formed at the checkpoint. The reason is the Crimea incident, as checks are being conducted to prevent the transport of potential weapons.