Barry - Our Government applies a small fine to IBM for Illegal Sales of Computers to Russia Federal Nuclear Center - and allows them to keep on exporting - while it harrasses the h*ll out of Intel and Microsoft.
Is Lou Gerstner related to Klaus Fuchs?
I think we have a dual standard here.
Paul
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infoworld.com
IBM unit pleads guilty on illegal computer sale to Russia
By Marc Ferranti
InfoWorld Electric
Posted at 4:32 PM PT, Jul 31, 1998
An IBM East European subsidiary has pleaded guilty in federal court to illegally exporting computers to a Russian nuclear research facility, agreeing to pay about $8.5 million in fines.
In a plea-bargain pact Friday before U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, IBM agreed with federal prosecutors that IBM East Europe/Asia Ltd. (IEEA) sold 17 RS/6000 computers to go-betweens acting on behalf of Arzamas-16, a "noncivil" nuclear laboratory operated by the Russian Federal Nuclear Center, according to court documents that IBM made available today. Arzamas was doing research and testing on nuclear explosive devices.
The sales were made despite the fact that regulatory bodies in the Unites States and Germany refused IBM's applications to sell the computers to Arzamas.
As part of its plea bargain, IBM submitted a "factual proffer" to the court. In this document IBM agreed that in August 1996, IEEA sold 16 RS/6000 Model 7013-591 machines, two fiber channel switches, and related hardware and software valued at about $1.5 million to Ofort, an agent acting on behalf of Azamas, without applying to authorities in the United States for the export. An IEEA employee helped rzamas-16 install the computers, IBM said.
In addition, in November 1996, Ofort received from IEEA an RS/6000 Model 9076-308 and related hardware and software valued at about $600,000. This machine also found its way to Arzamas, without IBM applying for an export license for the technology, IBM said in its plea agreement documents.
IEEA has received a two-year suspension of export privileges, but after pledging that it will not sell computers for military or nuclear use, has been put on probation, during which it will be
allowed to export computers, IBM said.
The purchases came under scrutiny by the U.S. Commerce Department after Russia's minister for atomic energy announced his department had bought at least one computer through a middleman in Europe.
According to U.S. export law, the sale of any computer overseas requires an export license if it is headed to a facility involved in nuclear explosives testing, according to the Commerce Department.
The plea agreement signed today ends an investigation that has been under way since at least last October.
IBM, in Armonk, N.Y., can be reached at (914) 765-1900 or ibm.com.
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