Police hold 'N'bomb' uranium smugglers in Moldova

Six people have been detained for smuggling a form of uranium that can be used to make a nuclear weapon, an official in Moldova has said.

He said the uranium-235 was brought in from Russia.

In an indication that the amount was substantial, he said the smugglers were trying to sell it to Muslim countries for €20m.

Uranium-235 makes up less than 1 % of natural uranium. Highly enriched uranium - which is used to arm nuclear weapons – is 90 % or more uranium-235.

The International Atomic Energy Agency considers 25 kilos (55lbs) of uranium-235 a “significant quantity” – technical language for the amount needed to make a nuclear bomb.

Four detainees are Moldovan citizens, one is Russian and another is from Moldova’s separatist Trans-Dniester region, said the Interior Ministry official.

He said the uranium was kept in a lead cylinder, adding more information will be disclosed after an investigation is conducted in a western country.

In 2010, Moldovan authorities arrested three people who were trying to sell nearly two kilos of uranium-238 worth €9m on the black market. The amount was too small – and not radioactive enough – to be used in a “dirty bomb.”