Russian Submarine Sinking Reveals Navy's Decline
Jeremy Page
Date: 02-Sep-03
Country: RUSSIA
The sinking of the K-159 nuclear-powered submarine and the death of nine crew members Saturday was another painful reminder of the armed forces' decline in the post-Soviet period, just as President Vladimir Putin moves into election mode.
This time, the Kremlin has moved fast to limit the fallout.
Putin, on a visit to Sardinia, called for a thorough probe. Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov blamed the Russian military's habit of "relying on mere chance" in its operations.
Just four days earlier, Ivanov had accused pilots of "negligence, showing-off and air hooliganism" after two helicopters collided in the far east, killing six crew members.
The government's swift response and readiness to admit human error contrasted with its handling of the Kursk disaster, when officials provided slow and conflicting information and spread rumors of a collision with a NATO submarine.
But analysts said Saturday's accident showed the government had failed to deliver military reforms promised after a torpedo exploded on the Kursk, sinking it and killing 118 servicemen.
"Unlike the Kursk, whose sinking remains shrouded in unanswered questions to this day, the K-159 accident shows the consequences of negligence and of crude violation of official instructions on the side of responsible officials of the Northern Fleet," read an editorial in the daily Kommersant.
CULTURE OF BRAVADO
Other analysts described a culture of "bravado" in the military, which encouraged people to take unnecessary risks.
"This is one new example of total decay in the navy, and in the armed forces in general," said military analyst Alexander Golts. "But it is not just equipment. There is total decay in terms of morale, discipline and training." The K-159, a former attack submarine decommissioned in 1989, tipped over and sank in Arctic storms as its floats broke loose while it was being towed to a scrap yard along the coast of the Kola Peninsula.
It was still not clear exactly what caused the vessel to sink to the seabed more than 200 meters (600 feet) below.
Some Russian media reports said the operation should not have gone ahead in such bad weather, others said the hatch on the conning-tower was open.
A spokesman for the Northern Fleet said the hatch was indeed open, but he denied that that had caused the ship to sink. "When a submarine is moving above the water, the hatch is always open. It was normal," he told Reuters.
Interfax news agency said rescuers may have been confused by a second submarine, also being towed on the surface, in the same area. Kommersant said some of the crew may have been asleep.
One of the biggest concerns now is that the submarine's nuclear reactor could start to leak radioactive material, even though it was shut down when it was decommissioned.
Ivanov has said radiation levels were normal in the Barents Sea after the accident, but Kommersant said the submarine was carrying spent nuclear fuel.
"There is of course a risk of radioactive materials leaking out," said Pavel Felgenhauer, an independent defense analyst.
He estimated there were at least 100 more decommissioned nuclear-powered submarines around the Kola Peninsula.
"This highlights a serious problem - the need to put this equipment in a safe position. The story does not end here."
