Russia jails hypersonic scientist, 71, for ‘leaking secrets to the Netherlands’

Russia today jailed one of its most eminent hypersonic scientists for allegedly leaking secrets to a NATO country as a western diplomat warned that Putin and his spies ‘see treason lurking around every corner.’

Professor Valery Golubkin, 71, has been sent to a strict regime penal colony for 12 years after being convicted of high treason by the Moscow City Court.

Golubkin, a professor at a Moscow institute studying aerodynamics who is seen as a world expert in hypersonic technology, was detained in 2020 on suspicion of handing over secrets to an unnamed NATO country.

According to reports, he was accused of handing the information involving aerodynamics to scientists from the Netherlands.

Golubkin worked for the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and at the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI).

Professor Valery Golubkin (pictured in court on Monday), 71, has been sent to a strict regime penal colony for 12 years after being convicted of high treason

He was the author of more than 120 scientific papers in the field, and was engaged in theoretical developments while having only the third form of access to state secrets – suggesting he never worked on ‘top secret’ projects.

Multiple top scientists have been held on national security accusations by Vladimir Putin’s regime in the past two years with the FSB security service accused of purging some of Russia’s top academics.

Critics of the Kremlin say the arrests often stem from unfounded paranoia, something the authorities deny.

Golubkin insisted no secrets were involved and he only shared information cleared by the Russian authorities.

‘Putin and his spies now see treason lurking around every corner,’ said a Western diplomat in Moscow.

Putin has prioritised the development of hypersonic missile technology, yet this has failed to bring him much advantage in the war in Ukraine.

Moscow often boasts about its hypersonic weapons (that are able to travel more than five times the speed of sound, or Mach 5) as being ‘unstoppable’.

However, few have been seen in action, and Kyiv has said it has been able to shoot down such missiles in a major blow to Putin’s goal of developing an arsenal that can rival that of the United States and other western nations.

Specifically, Ukraine said in May that it had shot down six Russian Kinzhal (Dagger) missiles. Russia dismissed Kyiv’s report.

Golubkin’s trail was held in secret.

His lawyer Alexander Timoshenko said earlier: ‘He does not admit guilt.

‘He is a theoretical physicist, he explained to me what he was doing, [concerning] theoretical physics. He did not have access to state secrets.’

Another Russian colleague and Golubkin’s supervisors Anatoly Gubanov, was arrested for high treason in December 2020.

The Moscow court where scientist Golubkin was sentenced on Monday is seen (file photo)

Putin has prioritised the development of hypersonic missile technology, yet this has failed to bring him much advantage in the war in Ukraine. Pictured: A Russian fighter jet carries a Kinzhal (dagger) hypersonic missile, a model that Ukraine has been able to shoot down

Golubkin said his arrest was in connection to Gubanov’s testimony, and that he passed two of his reports on to co-workers in the Netherlands on Gubanov’s orders.

According to Russia Free Press, another of Golubkin’s lawyers Ivan Pavlov said Russia’s FSB security agency ‘saw treason in the fact that Golubkin took part in the official international project HEXAFLY-INT (High-Speed Experimental Fly Vehicles).’

He did so, Pavlov said, ‘under a contract concluded between TsAGI and the European Institute, during which, at the direction of his superiors, he sent reports on the work performed.’

Human rights project Pervy Otdel, said: ‘Three commissions confirmed that there was no classified information [in the Golubkin case]… Those reports were available to be published and shared with international partners.’