Counter-espionage agents of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) jointly with the Central Investigations Office of the SBU have closed an international channel of weapons and ammunition supply to the countries on which the UN arms embargo is imposed.

"Within the criminal proceedings initiated under Part 2 of Article 201 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine after an illegal weapon storage site with 36 5V27D missiles used for the S-125 Pechora air defense missile system belonging to Rosoboronexport was found in Ukraine, the SBU operatives seized an arsenal of weapons," the press center of the SBU said on Friday.

Thus, during the authorized investigative actions, law enforcement officers, in addition to the mentioned missiles for the S-125 air defense system, additionally seized RPG-7, RPG-18 and RPG-22 grenade launchers, TM-62M anti-tank mines, MON-100 anti-personnel mines and tritol slabs weighing more than 200 kg on the territory of one of the seaports. They also found grenades for the RPG-7, packages with powder charge for PG-7PM handheld grenade launcher, boxes with electric detonators and MVCH-62 fuses.

The SBU said that it is indicative that the military cargo of OJSC Rosoboronexport was not stored in accordance with the name and actual products, but only by the number of containers and estimated weight.

"According to the available information, the Russian Federation used Ukrainian ports as a transit base for supplying arms to third countries. With the onset of Russian aggression, this arsenal could be used by Russian intelligence services to create so-called "weapon caches" in southern Ukraine to destabilize the situation in the region using sabotage groups, controlled by the Russian Federation," the press center of the SBU said.

Based on the materials of the SBU, investigative actions are carried out to establish all the circumstances of the offense and to bring to justice the persons involved in illegal activities.

As reported, on March 27, 2019, Ukraine's Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko said that Russians from Ukraine attempted to illegally export 36 land-to-air 5B27D missiles used in the C-125 Pechora missile system.

"From 2007 to the present time, Rosoboronexport officials from Russia, by prior agreement with officials of an enterprise of the military-industrial complex of Ukraine, carried out the illegal movement across the customs border of Ukraine with concealment from customs control of weapons, ammunition, explosive substances – namely, 36 ground-to-air anti-aircraft missiles 5B27D, which are part of the S-125 Pechora missile system, along with related equipment," Lutsenko said.

Lutsenko said criminal proceedings involving the matter began in January 2019. The prosecutor general said Russian officials in 2007, using fake documents, attempted to export the weapons to Eritrea, and possibly to other countries after certain manipulations with the documentation in order to undermine Ukraine's image.