State Secrets: An Insider's Chronicle of the Russian Chemical Weapons Program

CHAPTER 18 I am not Alone

Investigator Shkarin faced more and more difficulties, but he recklessly held his line. His objective was to produce the resolution that the Chekists needed from the expert commission. To be honest, I didn’t take it as seriously my lawyer Alexander Asnis did. I didn’t believe that I could be vindicated by the court or the investigation. I felt that only the pressure of public opinion could save me and make the KGB and the authorities retreat.

The press closely followed the progress of my case, and journalists interviewed me practically every day, calling and asking how the investigation was going. This instilled some kind of optimism in me. I still keep a lot of the articles published during that time in my archive.[123]^, [124]^, [125]^, [126]^, [127]^, [128]^, [129]^, [130]^, [131]^, [132]^, [133]^, [134]^, [135]^, [136]^, [137]^, [138]^, [139]^, [140]^, [141]^, [142]^, [143]

In the middle of November, Dr. Vladimir Iakimets, an activist with the Nevada-Semipalatinsk Antinuclear Movement called me and said that his organization was interested in my case and ready to give me some practical help. He also said that the secretary of the U.S. branch of the movement, Gale Colby, had already been working on this. Gale had learned about my case, from an article in the New York Times^143, [144] and from Dr. Frank von Hippel, shortly after my arrest. In early 1993, her friend Irene Goldman joined her in this work. Over the next year and a half, the two women worked long days, tirelessly, privately and at their own expense, meeting people and keeping contact with many American legislators and policy makers, prominent individuals and organizations, committees of scientific organizations and others that protect human rights and support scientists, by phone, e-mail and fax. They kept me posted on how my case was supported and reported abroad. This gave me precious moral support. I can’t put into words what I felt when I found out once again that people abroad were interested in my case, sympathized with me, and conducted various campaigns in my defense.

This is how I found out about the appeal by the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) to Russian President Boris Yeltsin. This organization was founded in 1945 by members of the Manhattan Project on the development of the first atom bomb. The objective of this organization was to struggle for peace and universal security. This organization is sponsored by about half of the surviving laureates of the Nobel Prize (45 scientists). In its first address the Federation of American Scientists asked the president of Russia to show generosity and release me from jail. Doctor Jeremy Stone, from the Federation of American Scientists, remarked in his letter to Yeltsin dated October 30, 1992, “Many of our scientists believe that Doctor Mirzayanov acted responsibly.”

Another special statement in the form of a resolution was adopted by the FAS on December 5, 1992—signed by Robert Solow, Nobel Prize laureate for peace, Chairman of the FAS, Doctor Jeremy Stone, President, Doctor Frank von Hippel, Chairman of the FAS Fund, and other scientists. It reads as follows:

I was shocked when I read this resolution. I had never expected such a response to my actions. By nature I have always been rather shy in my relations with people. My family brought me up to value modesty, and that was always what I aspired to. Like millions of other inhabitants of the U.S.S.R., I had internalized the principle at an early age, which was preached by the totalitarian regime – “Keep a low profile.” All of this prevented me from believing that I could be appreciated as an individual. Everything that I went through before I wrote those articles was part of a very deep inner process. It was so deep and private that it never even occurred to me to ask anyone for advice. Unfortunately, my wife wasn’t close enough to me in spirit to try to understand my actions.

In the middle of December 1992, it became known that the famous scientist Frank von Hippel was coming to Moscow and wanted to meet with me. One December evening, I met with Frank in his hotel room, which was located on the grounds of a former school for the higher training of Communist Party officials.

We talked for about an hour, and I felt that the American scientist tried to understand what prompted me to take such a resolute step. He did it with great tact, and I felt that he was a man of great intellect. I still feel that way about him. I am grateful to Frank for his energetic support. When he was already the top science advisor to U.S. President Bill Clinton, he published an article about my case.¹⁴⁴

At the end of our conversation Frank gave me a collection of excerpts from reports in the American press devoted to my case and a letter to President Boris Yeltsin from Ernst Eliel, president of the American Chemical Society, and a Nobel Prize laureate.

Support from my colleagues in the U.S. was totally unexpected for me and very valuable. I was extraordinarily pleased with the concern and attention of my foreign colleagues, and I am proud of it to this day.

Dr. Eliel said in his letter that the Board of Directors of the American Chemical Society, which has a membership of more than 145,000 people worldwide, had asked him to express the organization’s serious concern about the fate of their colleague, Vil Mirzayanov. It said that many chemists are certain that Mirzayanov acted responsibly when he was disclosing information connected with the development of chemical weapons in the open press. In conclusion, on behalf of the American Chemical Society, Dr. Eliel asked the Russian president for clemency. Dr. Eliel sent three more letters to the president of Russia.

Later after my arrest, I learned that the Subcommittee on Science and Human Rights of the Committee on International Activity at the American Chemical Society, with the energetic and tireless Professor Zafra Lerman, Dr. John Malin, Dr. Joyce Torio and others, had quickly organized a large-scale and powerful campaign in my support.

Even a number of members of the European Parliament were preoccupied with my case. In a letter dated November 19, 1992, addressed to the Attorney General of the Russian Federation, Valentine Stepankov, 24 deputies of the Greens of European Parliament who represented different factions from eight countries wrote:

The appeal was signed by E. Kvmstrop. K. Rot, Kh. Breher, U. Meizel, F. Gref (deputies from Germany), B. Buasier, M.-A. Isler-Begen, Zh. P. Raffin, M.-M. Dengiran, Zh. Onesta, M. Simeoni (France), P. Staes, P. Lannoi, B. Ernst (Belgium), A. Langer, V. Bettini, J. Amendola, E. Melandri (Italy), E. Newman and Morris (Great Britain), F. Versen (Denmark), N. Van-Dyke (Netherlands), and K. Martins (Spain).[145]

I was especially touched when I learned about the appeal of my fellow countrymen – Tatars from Society “Tugan tel” (Native Speech) to the president of Russia, the Attorney General, the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia, etc. signed by the president of the Society, R. Galimov, board members N. Garipov, R. Medvedev, and A. Musin, and Professor A. Burganov.

In their appeal they stressed that “future generations of mankind will be grateful to a scientist who bravely supported in the press the draft of the convention for the prohibition, development, production, stockpiling, and use of chemical weapons, and for the destruction of chemical weapons…” At the end of their appeal the authors expressed confidence that “humanism and respectability will prevail in the Russian leadership, and Vil S. Mirzayanov, a member of the board of “Tugan tel,” will be free on that glorious day.”

For me the biggest surprise was the support I received from the democratic deputies of the RF Supreme Soviet. Deputy Valery F. Menshikov, Head Deputy of the Committee for Energy, Natural Resources, and Ecology, was especially energetic. He spoke at a meeting of the Chamber of the Republics, and called for a notice about the question of the illegal arrest of Mirzayanov to be included in the agenda of the regular meeting of the RF Supreme Soviet. Nikolai Ryabov, Chairman of the chamber, put this suggestion to a vote and the chamber made a decision to include this question on the agenda of the meeting of the Supreme Soviet. According to the regulations, the decision by one of the chamber houses to discuss some question automatically included this question in the agenda of the meeting of the RF Supreme Soviet but its Chairman Ruslan Khasbulatov did everything to block the appeal.[146]

Finally, 35 deputies of the Supreme Soviet sent an official inquiry to V. G. Stepankov, the Attorney General of Russia asking to have the grounds and legitimacy of the proceedings that were instituted against me evaluated. They also asked him “to explain your official position regarding the resolution of the Committee of Constitutional Supervision at the USSR Supreme Soviet, according to which all unpublished secret departmental regulations have become invalidated.”

Apart from Valery Menshikov, the following people’s deputies signed the inquiry: L. Ponomarev, G. Zadonsky, V. Volkov, L. Gurevich, S. Zasukhin, Gorelov, M. Salie, N. Surkov, V. Urazhtsev, V. Sheinis, N. Yakimenko, A. Kopeika, V. Vermchuk, N. Vershinin, V. Komchatov, A. Shabad, M. Molostvov, S. Sirotkin, V. Varov, S. Yushenkov, G. Yakunin, A. Nasokhin, Yu. Luchinsky, K. Evtushenko, S. Umetskaya, R. Gun, B. Denisenko, Yu. Khrulev, V. Varukhin, Yu. Eltsov, S. Shestov, and S. Kovalev.

The answer came in December 18, 1992 from Deputy Attorney General Ivan S. Zemlyanushin. He stated “Criminal proceedings were instituted against Vil S. Mirzayanov based on Article 75 of the RSFSR Criminal Code and in accordance with a functioning decree issued by the president of the Russian Federation, N 20 dated January 14, 1992 “About protecting state secrets of the Russian Federation,” according to which until new legislative acts are issued that will regulate the safekeeping of state secrets of the Russian Federation, we should be guided by the normative acts adopted in the past on this issue.

The proceedings were instituted without any violation of the law.”

Unfortunately nobody asked why this decree is a secret and wasn’t published.

After this letter, it finally became clear that the authorities would judge me by the rules of the totalitarian regime.