WASHINGTON-Russia, over U.S. objections, was expected to charge Qualcomm Inc.’s Richard Bliss with espionage on Friday amid new revelations that the 29-year-old field technician reportedly admitted to illegally bringing satellite receivers into the country.
Nikolai Kovalev, head of the Federal Security Service, said Bliss has confessed to importing satellite receivers into Russia by declaring the equipment as “personal items” rather than obtaining proper consent from customs officials.
While the U.S. officials insist Bliss is not a spy, Nikolai said “there is evidence he was conducting espionage activities.”
Specifically, the FSB said Bliss conducted long-distance topographical surveys with Global Positioning System satellite receivers and obtained sensitive data about unspecified “restricted” facilities in Rostov-on-Don.
It is in that southern Russian city that Qualcomm has a $5.8 million contract with Electrosviaz of Rostov Region to build a wireless local loop system.
San Diego-based Qualcomm, which also has projects in the Russian cities of Chelyabinsk and Moscow, develops high-capacity wireless communications systems.
If convicted of spying, Bliss could face between 10 months and 10 years in jail.
“We do not believe that Mr. Bliss or Qualcomm knowingly violated any Russian laws,” said Qualcomm in a statement early last week.
The Central Intelligence Agency declined to comment on whether Bliss or any Qualcomm employee has ever been on its payroll.
A congressional source with ties to the intelligence community said that an initial check did not find Bliss to be a spy. According to the source, the charges against Bliss could be a throwback to the Cold War in which an expulsion of a suspected spy in one country triggered a like retaliatory action by the other country.
In this case, for example, Russia could be getting back at the United States for ushering out of this country a former Russian KGB agent who arrived in a Boston airport drunk some months back.
Russia, according to the source, is still very paranoid about espionage.
Other theories by those who discount the Bliss spy accusation are that Bliss could be the unlucky victim of a setup by a competitor in Rostov or by the Russian mob, which has a significant presence in business and has been tied to government officials.
Indeed, the murder of Paul Tatum, an American businessman, in a Moscow subway remains under investigation.
Bliss, who has been in Russia for a month working on the Rostov wireless project as part of a seven-person team, was detained by authorities Nov. 25. He joined Qualcomm four months ago.
The U.S. Embassy in Moscow protested the delay in allowing a consular to visit Bliss after he was detained. Bliss reportedly has retained legal representation and has been treated well by Russian authorities.
Another Qualcomm employee, who was not identified, was detained by Russia’s FSB but later released.
“The American citizens involved here have no connection with the U.S. government and certainly are not spies,” said Richard Hoagland, the U.S. Embassy spokesman in Moscow.
In Washington, James Rubin, a spokesman for the State Department, said as a matter of protocol he could not comment on whether Bliss was involved in any intelligence gathering for the United States.
“Our immediate concern is for Mr. Bliss and his family (Bliss is single and has parents in Longview, Wash.), and we are working diligently to obtain his release and return him safely to the U.S.,” Qualcomm stated.
“Qualcomm has ongoing contracts to deliver modern telecommunications systems to Russia, and we will continue our work throughout the region,” the firm added.
Just as Qualcomm doesn’t want the incident to sour business relations in Russia, which like other emerging markets has embraced wireless technology for basic communications, Russia apparently feels the same way.
“Russia is not interested in the aggravation of relations and mounting of tensions around this case,” said Gennady Tarasov, a senior Russian Foreign Ministry.
The Itar-Tass news service speculated that espionage charges could be dropped during the trial, a view that would seem to support the theory that the Bliss case is serving some other purposed.
For sure, the Bliss episode points up the risks face by American wireless firms in emerging markets with fragile democracies having political and economic instability.
Reuters, The Associated Press, United Press International and The San Diego Union-Tribune contributed to this report.
