Russian admiral: NATO caused Kursk disaster

Moscow: A retired Russian admiral has alleged that the 2000 Kursk submarine disaster was caused by a collision with a NATO sub, an unproven claim that defies the official conclusion that the country’s worst post-Soviet naval catastrophe was triggered by a faulty torpedo.Adm. Retired Vyacheslav Popov, who was the commander of Russia’s Northern Fleet when the Kursk exploded and sank during naval maneuvers in the Barents Sea, charged in an interview that the NATO submarine inadvertently bumped into the Kursk while shadowing it at close distance. Popov told the state RIA Novosti news agency that the submarine was also damaged in the powerful explosion and sent a distress signal from the area. He didn’t identify the submarine and acknowledged that he lacks proof to back up his claim.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov refused to comment on Popov’s claim and pointed to the official probe that concluded that the catastrophe was triggered by an explosive propellant that leaked from a faulty torpedo. Popov, who was blamed for his slow response to the catastrophe as the Northern Fleet’s chief, has made the collision claim before, but his latest statement was more outspoken. Russian media reports claimed that two U.S. submarines and a British sub were spotted in the area near the Russian naval exercise in the Barents Sea when the Kursk disaster happened. -(AP)