US embassy cable - 05MINSK1436

S E C R E T MINSK 001436 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR CA/VO/L/C LYNDA DAVIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/24/15 
TAGS: CVIS (FEDULOV, YURIY), PINR, PGOV, BO 
SUBJECT: Security Advisory Opinion (FEDULOV, YURIY) 
 
 
Classified by Ambassador George Krol for Reasons 1.4 (B,D) 
 
Ref: IIR 6 043 0192 04 / CZECH INTELLIGENCE SERVICE 
MONITORS A BELARUSIAN CITIZEN DUE TO SUSPICIOUS BEHAVIOR AT 
SCIENTIFIC SYMPOSIUMS (U). DTG 131343Z JUL 04 
 
1. (S) Summary: Post requests guidance regarding the visa 
application of Yuri Nikolaevich Fedulov.  Mr. Fedulov is 
applying for a visa in order to attend NATO working group 
conferences and to visit family.  The previous Defense 
Attache and the previous Consular Officer at Embassy Minsk 
had serious intelligence/counterintelligence concerns 
regarding Mr. Fedulov.  Please advise whether objections 
exist to the issuance of a visa.  If so, please specify 
whether such objections focus only on Mr. Fedulov's 
business travel or also travel to visit his family.  Please 
also specify visa validation and annotation.  Thank you. 
End Summary. 
 
2. (U) Yuri Nikolaevich Fedulov is a former Belarusian Army 
officer who is now a senior researcher at the United 
Institute of Informatics Problems, part of the National 
Academy of Science.  He applied on November 23, 2004, for a 
multiple entry, one-year, B1/B2 visa in order to attend the 
NATO NMSG working group MSG-024, the Interservice/Industry 
Training, Simulation and Education Conference, and to visit 
his son who lives in America. 
 
Present Application Situation 
----------------------------- 
 
3. (S) Mr. Fedulov applied on November 23, 2004, for a 
multiple entry B1/B2 visa to attend conferences and visit 
his son.  The DATT at the time had 
intelligence/counterintelligence concerns and discussed the 
matter with the ConOff.  The DATT cited Mr. Fedulov's 
possible involvement in the arrest and imprisonment of Dr. 
Christopher Lez, a German national and instructor at the 
George C. Marshall Center for European Security Studies. 
Dr. Lez was detained on 15 September 2000 by the Russian 
Federal Security Service at the request of the Belarusians 
and was imprisoned in Belarus on espionage charges.  On 21 
July 2001 a Belarusian military court found Dr. Lez guilty 
of "collecting state secrets for a foreign nation and 
gathering other information to the prejudice of the 
Belarusian interests at the order of a foreign intelligence 
service."  Dr. Lez was sentenced to seven years 
imprisonment, but was pardoned by President Lukashenko in 
September 2001.  As the head of the international 
cooperation at the Belarusian Military Academy in the mid 
1990's, Mr. Fedulov was instrumental in assisting USDAO 
Minsk with establishing a home-stay program for visiting 
U.S. military officers assigned to the Marshall Center. 
Mr. Fedulov eventually went to the Marshall Center in 1999 
and visited numerous times afterwards as a guest speaker 
with Dr. Lez, a long-time friend, acting as his host and 
facilitator.   The DATT also cited Mr. Fedulov's current 
work within the Belarusian Academy of Sciences, an 
institution that the DATT suspected of involvement in 
weapons development and technology proliferation.  In one 
conversation between the two, Mr. Fedulov stated that his 
job was to integrate technology with NATO technology, which 
the DATT interpreted as exploiting western technology.  The 
ConOff also had concerns about technology transfer and held 
Mr. Fedulov's application under 221(g) pending further 
information. 
 
4. (S) On May 24, 2005, Mr. Fedulov approached the Consular 
Section inquiring about his visa.  The ConOff continued the 
221(g) status.  Although Mr. Fedulov personally knew the 
DATT from the Marshall Center, he avoided him and never 
requested his assistance with his visa.  When DATT and 
ConOff departed post this summer, they briefed the new 
ConOff and DATT, who sought information from DIA. 
 
5. (S) On November 22, Mr. Fedulov returned to the Consular 
Section again, wanting to travel to the NATO NMSG working 
group MSG-024 and the Interservice/Industry Training, 
Simulation and Education Conference in Florida from 
November 28 to December 2.  The present DATT provided 
reftel as explanation of the 
intelligence/counterintelligence concerns of the previous 
DATT. 
 
6. (U) ConOff interviewed Mr. Fedulov on November 25 to 
gain an update for this advisory opinion.  Mr. Fedulov 
again requested a multiple entry B1/B2 visa and provided a 
number of documents.  These documents include the cover 
page of the minutes of the 3rd Meeting of the Exploratory 
Team MSG-ET-017 as well as the ET-017 Contact List.  [Note: 
The MSG covered modeling and simulation for Civil Emergency 
Planning in the context of Defense Against Terrorism.] 
All documents have been scanned into his November NIV 
application file.  He included the following travel 
timeline: 
 
11/28/05 - 12/2/05: Business: NATO Modeling and Simulation 
Group meeting (MSG-024).  Orlando, Fl.  Warren Bizub, JWFC 
JMO, host. 
 
After 12/27/2005: Private: to his son in the U.S. for the 
birth of his first grandchild 
 
2006 (dates TBD): Business: NATO Modeling and Simulation 
Group meeting (ET-017/MSG-049). Leon Armour, DMSO, host. 
 
 
Applicant Background 
-------------------- 
 
7. (U) Full name: Yuri Nikolaevich Fedulov. 
Alternative spelling: Yuriy Nikolayevich Fedulov. 
 
DOB: 08-APR-1948 
 
POB: Minsk, Belarus 
 
Wife's Name: Natallia Petrovna Fedulova (maiden name: 
Pasko) 
 
Relatives in the U.S.: 
Son -- Igor Fedulov, U.S. citizen, Chicago, IL.  Contact 
phone: 312-894-6925 
Brother-in-Law -- Victor Pasko, Professor of Electrical 
Engineering at Pennsylvania State University, since 2000. 
Contact phone: 814-865-3467 
 
Previous Travel to the U.S.: 
 
OCT-1999: A2 
 
10-SEP-2002: B1, single entry, six month validity 
To: IIFWP Special Convocation, New York City 
Occupation at the time: Inspector, UN Monitoring and 
Inspection Commission 
 
06-NOV-2003: B1/B2, single entry, six month validity 
To: Conference 
Occupation: Senior Researcher, United Institute of 
Informatics Problems, National Academy of Science 
 
KROL