gator belts and patty melts

the breakaway republic of Transdniester in Eastern Europe... I guess the name is too hard to pronounce

(The Times)


?The terms of the deal have changed. I will be in touch later to give you a bank account number. You must now transfer $5,000 to see the rockets and then we will proceed as agreed earlier. On May 9 we will move the rockets across the border.?

He added that a bank transfer to cover the cost of the forged documents for the cargo would have to be made from inside Transdniester using his satellite telephone. ?You have 24 hours to talk to your people about the new terms,? he said.

Following this meeting the reporter was followed on the streets of Chisinau by a man believed to be working for Dimitri. The man at one point sat two tables away from him at an outdoor cafe for more than an hour.

The Sunday Times withdrew that night because taking the investigation any further would have required making a substantial payment to an arms smuggler who had no compunction about dealing with terrorists.

However, Dimitri?s willingness to let the rockets be tested with a Geiger counter strongly indicated that he had access to them and believed they could be moved at short notice. The offer to sell the Alazans appears to confirm fears in the West that deadly weapons could be acquired by terrorists in Transdniester with relative ease.