Russia To Charge U.S. Telecommunications Worker With Spying

Russia has decided to file formal espionage charges against an American engineer accused of making land surveys of sensitive sites.

The charges are to be filed today against Richard L. Bliss, 29, a field technician working for the telecommunications firm Qualcomm Inc., of San Diego, the Federal Security Service said Thursday.

Bliss has been in custody since he was detained Nov. 25 in the southern Rostov-on-Don region. Under Russian law, he must be charged within 10 days or released.

The U.S. Embassy says Bliss has no connection to the government and is not a spy. “The basic facts remain unchanged,” embassy spokesman Richard Hoagland said Thursday, calling Bliss “a private sector engineer.”

He would not comment on Russia’s plans to file charges.

Bliss’ arrest is a rare case of Russia detaining an American citizen in the post-Cold War era. Russian officials insist it is not politically motivated.

“I think his actions are proved by evidence from witnesses and him himself,” said Valery Dyatlenko, chief of security services for the Rostov region.

“Our only goal is to defend the security of the Russian state, to defend whatever secrets Russia has left,” Dyatlenko told independent NTV television.

Russian intelligence agents accused Bliss of surveying secret, closed sites using satellite receivers brought into Russia illegally.

Qualcomm is working under contract with a Russian firm, Elektrosvyaz, to install a cellular phone system in the Rostov region.

The U.S company, which has about 7,000 employees worldwide, said Bliss was involved in installing and testing the system.

According to U.S. officials, it is common when putting in such systems to make land surveys using satellites.